


Hunters of Justice

by NaanContributor, xTRESTWHOx



Category: DCU (Comics), Justice League & Justice League Unlimited (Cartoons), RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe, Crossover, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-12
Updated: 2020-02-17
Packaged: 2020-03-01 06:59:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 37
Words: 414,210
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18795298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NaanContributor/pseuds/NaanContributor, https://archiveofourown.org/users/xTRESTWHOx/pseuds/xTRESTWHOx
Summary: Remnant has fallen, its cities captured and its greatest defenders defeated at the hands of the alien conqueror, Brainiac. In the aftermath of his victory, the people of Remnant's last hope lies in the hands of two teams of students, whisked away to another world. A world where Gods walk among them.





	1. The Fall of Remnant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remnant's last defenders, including teams RWBY and JNPR, fight valiantly for the defense of Vale against Brainiac's conquest of the planet, desperately clinging to any shreds of hope before the inevitable. No matter what happens, however, both teams vow that nothing will tear them apart. For so long as they have each other, nothing can truly defeat them.

**Hunters of Justice**

**Chapter One: Fall of Remnant**

* * *

 

"Contact right!"

"Suppressive fire! Suppressive fire!"

"Gods, they're everywhere!"

"Keep firing!"

The shouts of the Atlesian soldiers were drowned out by the sounds of intense and non-stop gunfire as they fired upon the horde around them. Dust rounds, rockets and grenades flew out towards the enemy, mowing them down in droves, but their numbers were relentless and unending. As one fell, two more took its place as they edged closer and closer towards the line. The soldiers were beginning to panic, but it was a testament to their training that they did not break the line nor cease their valiant defense.

"Retreat! Fall back to the perimeter!" the sergeant shouted towards his men as the enemy grew closer.

"Sir, yes-!" a private gasped as his flagging Aura collapsed and a three-pronged metal claw pierced his chest from his back. He coughed up blood and numbly grasped at the intrusive object, futility trying to free himself even as he was lifted upwards off the ground with ease. Slowly, with feeling quickly leaving his body, the private turned his head to look at the claw's source. It was attached to a long, thin metal tube that extended out of an outstretched metal hand with two fingers and a thumb. A purple light shone from the hole in its palm, from which the extended tube emerged from. The arm itself was meaty yet more like sinew than actual flesh and bone, for that was all it was. Simply sinew under cobalt armor plating on the chest, arms, and legs. The last image the private saw was the exposed skull of the alien robot, a purple light emitting from the center of its forehead. With a pained and scared whimper, the private relaxed and went still.

"Cobalt!" the sergeant yelled as he raised his shotgun to fire, only to be gunned down by purple plasma bolts. He fell, smoking holes in his torso. His men finally panicked and began to fire wildly, only to meet the same fate. Their smoking corpses fell to the ground, joining the hundreds of other Atlesian and Valean soldiers who had been defending this chokepoint, giving their lives in a desperate attempt for time. The robots marched forward, stepping over them as if they weren't there. Hundreds more followed after them as they marched further and further into the city, pushing Vale's defenders further and further back towards Beacon Academy.

* * *

 

"No…" Ruby Rose whimpered as she watched the carnage unfold through her scope. She was lying prone on top of a ruined building, a bakery judging by the wrecked sign on the street below. Her once pristine red and black gothic combat skirt was torn and shredded, covered in dirt, grime, and dried blood, not to mention oil stains. Crescent Rose was in similar condition, the once mighty sniper-scythe now dented and cracked all along its body from the constant fighting.

' _How did things go so wrong?_ ' she thought as she tore her gaze away and closed her eyes. Her body was so tired. All she wanted to do was just lie down and sleep, give her body the rest it was demanding, but she couldn't. Not when an honest to gods' alien invasion was happening.

It started two days ago. Two days. That's how long it took for Remnant to fall. Atlas. Vacuo. Mistral. Kuo Kuana. All were gone, their only remains being smoking craters where once stood mighty cities. Before it happened, everything was going great. She was happy, things were simple. After all, it was the Vytal Festival. It was supposed to be that way. Students from all over the world, from every huntsmen academy, were in Vale to compete in a bi-annual showcase of their abilities and to foster peace between the kingdoms.

Her team, RWBY, and their sister team, JNPR, had easily moved into the second round and were preparing for the duo's matches when the CCT suddenly broke down. No one knew what was going on or why it happened. That's when the first ships came through the clouds. Nothing had scared her more than that one moment, when that first alien vessel, shaped like a skull with tentacles sprouting from its base, emerged from the clouds and hovered over the city. She remembered the silence that hung over everyone as they simply stared at it, awe and fear filling their souls and her own. Then, the CCT suddenly turned back on, revealing a green man clad in metallic purple. Ruby couldn't tell if it was armor or simply part of his body, possibly both. Three purple circles dotted his bald forehead in an upside down triangle, but it was his eyes that were the most striking to her. They were emotionless, calculating. Him looking upon them was less like looking at people and more like he was looking down on ants. For the longest time, he remained silent. The tension grew with each passing moment. Then, he spoke, and she could still remember the words like they were said only five minutes ago.

" _People of Remnant_ ," he said in an emotionless tone, " _I…am Brainiac. Do not be alarmed, for I offer salvation. Your people, your cultures, your knowledge will be preserved for eternity, spared from the ravages of time. Do not resist._ "

At that, he cut the transmission. The CCT then transitioned to an image of Shade Academy, home to the largest city in Vacuo. Like Vale, it too had a skull ship hovering over it. People wondered what was going to happen, what Brainiac had meant, only for the ship to suddenly unleash a large beam straight into the heart of Shade Academy. Like a tsunami, the beam engulfed the city and everything in it, blinding everyone with its bright light before receding. When the light was gone, Shade was a smoking crater, gone without a trace. Then, the CCT finally gave out and turned to static.

That's when the screaming started.

Everything had gone straight to Hell ever since. The Atlesian ships General James Ironwood had brought with him to defend the Vytal Festival had managed to bring down the skull-ship above Vale before it could use its weapon, albeit after a massive Grimm attack weakened the vessel first, but the other kingdoms weren't so lucky. With Shade's CCT tower gone, the network had collapsed, but a stream of refugees fleeing the destruction of their homes brought with them the news of the other cities. They, too, suffered the same fate as Shade, and as each city fell, more and more ships descended onto Vale like vultures. It was only due to the increased military and huntsmen presence that Vale had lasted so long, but even then it wasn't enough. Within the first day, all of the automated Atlesian Knights and Paladins were exhausted, forcing soldiers, huntsmen, and even students to put their lives on the line.

"Ruby," she heard a voice crack over the radio. Ruby recognized it as the voice of Jaune, currently on the ground level with his team and a few others. "Ruby, they're getting closer. Are you in position?"

"Hold on," she answered as she readied herself once more. Looking through her scope, she saw as the army of Brainiac Drones marched towards their position, gunning down any soldiers who stood in their way with machine-like efficiency. It made Ruby sick to look at, but she steeled herself and took a deep breath. "Ready."

"On my mark," Jaune whispered over the radio. The army marched closer and closer, their heavy footsteps causing the ground beneath her to shake.

"Wait for it…" The army marched closer. They were now only three hundred feet away from her position, but her scope remained centered on the lead robot's head.

"Wait for it…" The army was now even closer, and Ruby could hear the whirling of gears from their mechanical bodies.

"Now!"

Ruby fired as soon as the word left Jaune's mouth and struck the purple light of the drone, exploding the head in a spray of bone, muscle, and green fluid. The other drones whirled their attention towards her and raised their arms to fire, only for a series of explosions to ripple through their ranks. Fire, shrapnel, and shards of concrete and metal sent hunks of drone flying through. The survivors were momentarily disoriented, which Ruby exploited by firing her rifle as fast as she could. With each shot, another head exploded. She was soon joined by more gunfire as the other students entered the fray.

"E.T. go home!" she heard Yang cry out as she leapt into the horde of robots. Her powerful punches rippled through the robot horde, each one breaking off chunks of metal and sending her foes flying. She ducked underneath a volley of plasma then responded with a pair of shotgun blasts, courtesy of her shotgun-gauntlets, Ember Celica. The ten-gauge shells punctured holes in the torsos of the robots, making them fall lifelessly onto the cracked concrete road. Her attackers defeated, she moved onto another group, leaping towards them with her arm reared back for a punch. She slammed into them, sending them flying, but she didn't rest. Yang continued going, moving from drone to drone, tanking every shot and blow that managed to hit her.

From behind, another drone aimed at her while Yang was preoccupied in her fighting, only for that drone to suddenly have a grapnel embedded into its chassis. A black ribbon was attached to it, and before it could react, its head was kicked clean off its shoulders. Sparks flew from the stump before it fell to the ground with a loud clunk, and Blake Belladonna ripped Gambol Shroud's blade free. She clutched it in her hand before a volley of plasma shot towards her. Her semblance took the blow for her, allowing Blake to escape without harm as she shifted her weapon into a pistol and began to fire. The small caliber bullets pinged off the drone's armor, drawing their attention as they marched towards her. Seeing how shooting them wasn't working, she shifted her weapon back into a sword and leapt towards them. She swiped at their necks, nimbly moving around the punches and volleys of the alien robots as she downed one after another. A drone attempted to attack her from behind, only for her to pull out her sheath and use it as a cleaver on its skull, splitting it in two. She quickly shifted her sword into its gun configuration and rapidly fired at the skull of another drone. It shattered under the barrage, but she didn't have time for respite as she used her semblance to avoid yet another volley.

On the other side of the street, a similar situation was unfolding as Weiss Schnee danced around a large group of drones. She skated around on her glyphs, stabbing the drones in the eyes and slicing through their necks. As another volley of plasma shot towards her, she threw up a glyph to block it then stabbed her rapier, Myrtenaster, into the ground. Large spikes of ice shot up from the ground, impaling multiple drones on each spike while also creating a wall along the street, cutting Brainiac's forces off.

"They just keep coming!" she grunted as she caught her breath. They had been fighting non-stop for the past two days. She may have gotten at most five hours of sleep, intermittent at most. The respite didn't last long as cracks started to appear on the ice, accompanied by wisps of steam. She could feel the plasma impact on the ice, and it wouldn't be long until the wall broke.

"Dammit," she breathed out and rotated her Dust cylinders to Fire Dust. Soon after, a hole was punched in the ice wall and the drones piled through. They were met immediately by Weiss' furious attacks, each one boosted by a searing flame that melted through their armor with ease. At the same time, she could hear the crack of sniper shots and the explosion of drones' heads, and Weiss allowed herself to smirk. Ruby was still on her perch.

"Good shot, Ru-ah!" Weiss screamed as she felt a searing pain on her side as a plasma bolt struck her. She fell to the ground, clutching her side as she threw out a swath of flame at her attacker. The scorching heat melted the armor onto the sinewy body and burning it into a husk. With the attacker dead, she backed herself off against the wall, clutching her wound and gritting her teeth.

"Weiss!" she heard voices yell out as more drones marched towards her. Her eyes wide, she raised up a glyph just as a barrage of plasma erupted towards her. The glyph began to crack under the barrage, and Weiss prepared to send another swath of flame towards the group, only for an explosion to erupt among them. Their shattered bodies rained all around them, leaving Weiss stunned as she looked upon the carnage.

"Weiss! Come on, we've got to move!" she heard someone yell at her as they lifted her to her feet. She turned her head to see it was Jaune Arc, a trickle of blood running down his head. Behind him, Pyrrha Nikos was firing her rifle at the robot horde, each shot striking the head and exploding it. In the beginning of the siege, the first time she had crushed an entire platoon of robots with a surge of her Semblance had been awe inspiring, but at the same time had left her too drained to help fend off the next wave that immediately followed. After two days of near constant battle, she was fighting conservatively to save her energy. At the same time, Lie Ren was firing Stormflower at full auto on the oncoming horde, jumping and flipping over flung tentacles and plasma volleys. In sync with her partner's movements, Nora Valkyrie was firing grenades towards the horde, thinning them with each blast, yet the horde kept coming. With a wicked grin, Nora shifted Magnhild into a hammer and began to swing with reckless abandon. The hammer blows crushed the drones like paper, and with each swing more fell.

"Nora, duck!" Pyrrha shouted, and Nora immediately complied. Pyrrha fired Miló at the drone aiming at Nora's back, two rounds striking the chest and the third shattering the skull. Another fell upon Pyrrha, who swiftly shifted her rifle into a sword and cleaved through the torso with ease. Another came up on her, so she threw Akoúo̱ towards it, the shield embedding itself halfway into the chest as she stabbed up through the head of another drone. Another drone came from behind and aimed its hand towards her head, only to have the blade of Crocea Mors stabbed through its chest. Jaune then checked his shield against the body, forcing it off while he swung towards another.

"Thank you," Pyrrha said as she pulled her shield back towards her with her Semblance, dodging the punch of a drone as she kicked it away, the force of her kick caving in the chest.

"No problem," Jaune responded as he brought his shield up against a plasma barrage. The metal glowed from the searing heat, but it held as he charged towards the enemy. He smashed his shield against a drone, knocking it to the ground before he stomped on its head, crushing it underfoot. Hearing the whirl of another drone, he swiveled around and slammed his shield into another, knocking the head clear off. He then swung his sword like a cleaver, only for the blade to get stuck in the chest.

"Shit!" he grunted as he tried to free his sword, but it wouldn't budge. From the corner of his eye, he noticed another drone raise its arm towards him, forcing him to abandon his attempt and bring up his shield as the bolt shot towards him. The blast struck his shield yet still knocked him to the ground. In a daze, he attempted to pick himself off his feet, only for another drone to lift him up and throw him against a nearby wall, knocking the breath from his lungs.

"Guah!" he grunted as he fell to the ground. The drone raised its arm and prepared to fire, only for a spike of ice to erupt from its back. The ice quickly spread and encased the drone in a solid sheet of ice. One pointed strike later, and the drone crumbled, revealing his savior to be a panting Weiss.

"Thanks," Jaune groaned as Weiss helped him to his feet.

"You're welcome." She nodded then leapt back into the fray while Jaune moved to grab his sword. He pulled, but the blade would not budge.

"Here, let me," Yang said as she gripped the sword and pulled. With a squeal, the blade was freed from the chassis, and with a tired smirk she handed the ancestral weapon back to him. Jaune nodded and the two blonds ran over to the others.

"How we doing?" he asked while taking cover along the still standing ice wall, albeit one with significant cracks and chunks missing. "Ruby, what do you see?"

"They're pulling back," Ruby said over the radio, the crack of her sniper rifle ringing out as she felled another drone. "We're clear, for now."

"Thank the gods," Jaune let out a breath he didn't know he was holding and allowed himself to sit down in rest. Around him, the others let out breaths of their own and collapsed to the ground.

"Hold on, I'm coming down to you guys now," Ruby declared. With tired smiles, the others saw Ruby disperse into a cloud of roses, quickly bringing her to street level before solidifying. She then ran over to the others and sat down next to them, panting the entire time.

"Well," she said through pants, "we did it. I told you guys the plan would work."

"Yeah, but for how much longer?" Jaune asked, his tone much less hopeful. Ruby frowned slightly before shaking her head.

"Hey, don't think like that. We held them here, we can hold them elsewhere."

"Ruby's right," Nora added. "Just wait and see, we'll force these guys back!" Although she said it through a smile, everyone could tell it was strained. The stress of the past few days had been weighing on all of them heavily, and try as they might, Ruby and Nora could only do so much. Seeing everyone's spirit's drop, Yang narrowed her eyes and stood up.

"Well, whatever happens, moping around isn't going to save the day," she declared, drawing everyone's attention. "We're alive, and we're together. Right now, that's all that matters." Everyone stared at Yang for a moment. Only then did they allow faint smiles to appear on their faces.

"Yang's right," Ren said. "We're together."

"Right." Jaune nodded then stood up. "So, we should probably—"

A rumbling sound interrupted Jaune, and the huntsmen-in-training went still. For a moment, they thought it was Brainiac's army returning faster than they expected, only to realize it was coming from behind their lines. Then, a convoy of Atlesian forces, consisting of one of the last remaining Paladins and backed up by Valean militia and faunus wearing White Fang masks appeared from around the street corner, and the students let out a sigh of relief. As the convoy stopped in front of them, an Atlesian lieutenant marched over to them.

"Sir," Jaune said, giving the military man proper respect.

"Huntsmen," the lieutenant saluted. "New orders from Beacon. You are to fall back to Defensive Point Epsilon."

"What?" Yang sounded incredulous. "We held our point. Hell, we kicked their metal asses!"

"And we are grateful for the time you bought us," the soldier countered, "but with all due respect, ma'am, your group isn't the only checkpoint. Others didn't fare so well." The students went quiet, letting the information sink in.

"Wh…where?" Ruby asked, her voice low. The lieutenant sighed and took off his helmet.

"We've suffered heavy casualties in Sectors Five through Nine, and Brainiac's forces broke through in Sectors Two, Four, and Ten, forcing them into retreat. Sector One was completely lost with all hands."

The man's words reverberated through the huntsmen-in-training. "I…" Ruby sputtered, and the lieutenant placed his hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry." He put his helmet back onto his head. "The APC will take you to your next location."

"What about you?" Jaune asked, a sinking feeling in his stomach.

"We're here to buy you time." The man's voice was slightly hitched but remained firm. Honorable for a man who knew he was about to die. Jaune clenched his fist and looked away while Yang looked up and shook her head sorrowfully. Without another word being said, the lieutenant escorted the students to the back of the APC, where they silently sat down inside.

"Lieutenant," Yang called out to the soldier, who was about to close the APC hatch. He stopped and looked at her, slightly confused. "Give 'em hell."

The soldier cracked a smile. "We will." With those final words, he close the hatch and locked it. Two knocks followed, and the students felt the APC roll away, the roar the engines drowning out their silence. The empty noise remained for several minutes, everyone having blank looks on their faces, until Jaune suddenly and violently punched the hull beside him in anger, leaving a noticeable dent in the metal.

No one said anything, for none blamed him.

* * *

 

Inside Beacon Academy, what once was a sanctum of learning for humanity's defenders was now a bustling mess of nurses, doctors, and soldiers looking over wounded and battle reports alike. Every room, dorm, and classroom was now filled with refugees and the wounded, while military personnel and huntsmen hurried with orders. In the Beacon Amphitheater, where students once stood and formed their teams, everything had been ripped out to make room for military monitors and radio equipment. With the CCT down, it was all they had.

In the center of the room was a large holographic table with a sharply dressed man hovering over it. His once pristine white suit was now torn and shredded, revealing the cybernetics underneath on one side of his body. His eyes were bloodshot, and his fingers tightly clenched the metal table.

"General," a white-haired woman approached him, a noticeable limp in her gait.

"Specialist Schnee," he responded, his eyes never leaving the table. "How close are they?"

"We have stalled them five miles out from the Beacon perimeter. The rest of the city is overrun or about to be." Winter's voice remained firm, but noticeable cracks appeared in the immaculate surface. "We… We think we can last for another few hours at most before we exhaust our supplies."

General Ironwood remained silent and stared at the holographic map of Vale in front of him. On it, a handful of blue islands were surrounded by a sea of red, and green dots were quickly swallowed by purple.

"How are the evacuations?" he asked.

"More are still trickling into Beacon and our other safe zones. We believe most have arrived."

"How many have not?"

Winter paused before recomposing herself. "We believe there to be still roughly a thousand individuals still trapped in the city." Winter stopped, and the air got heavy. "Sir, if I may, I suggest we—"

"Order all combat personal and huntsmen to reinforce the defensive line," Ironwood interrupted her. "They are to buy as much time as possible for those civilians to reach safety. Retreat as slowly as possible."

"Sir, that would exhaust us even further," Winter pleaded. "We already have as many people in safe zones as possible. We would be better served to—"

"Reinforce. The line." Ironwood was cold and uncompromising. Winter took a step aback before nodding.

"Yes, sir." She saluted then walked away to give his orders, and James Ironwood sighed.

"Dammit.  _Dammit._ " He scowled as he looked upon the map.

"She's right, you know," a gruff voice softly called out to him. Ironwood turned to look at its owner, one Qrow Branwen. He, like all the others, was covered in dirt, grime, and dried blood, his clothes having turned even more ragged from walking on crutches. Beside him was the ever calm Professor Ozpin, his glasses cracked and using his cane more heavily than just a few days before, an exhausted Glynda Goodwitch, one of her arms in a sling, and Taiyang Xiao Long, both of his arms in heavy casts. His thoughts briefly drifted towards Raven Branwen, the person who managed to get Tai off of Patch Island and into Vale so quickly, only to dourly note that she disappeared soon after. Whether she had gone into hiding or was dead, he did not know.

"I do not have time for this, Qrow." Ironwood scowled and turned back to the hologram. "Unless you have a suggestion on how to stop this, leave. I can't afford any distractions right now."

"James, stop," Tai called out, his voice gentle. "You are destroying yourself."

"He's destroying us!" James suddenly shouted, halting all other techs as they looked towards him. "Vale is the only kingdom left, and I'll be damned before I just let it fall!"

"And you have done admirably," Glynda responded. "No one could ask more of you. But I cannot just sit by and let you destroy yourself over a battle that is already lost."

"We have not lost!" James barked back, but Ozpin shook his head.

"James, please," Ozpin's voice was full of regret and he was bordering on tears, but he continued anyway. "Vale has already fallen. Simply throwing more lives into the meat grinder will not save it."

"Do not say that!" The general marched over to the professors. "Vale has not fallen! Not yet, not while we can still fight!"

"Do you think we don't want to believe that?" Qrow asked, gently grabbing Ironwood's shoulder. "Believe me, there is nothing more that I want to believe, with every fiber of my being, that we can possibly win this. But we can't. Not like this."

"I…" James ripped his arm away from Qrow's and prepared to retort, only for the words to stop in his throat. "I…I can't just… If Vale falls…"

"Then Remnant falls," Ozpin finished mournfully. He gazed at his cane. "I prayed this day would never come, but…" He couldn't finish, and James looked at his friend with regret.

"Do…" Ironwood managed to speak once more, turning towards the technicians. "Have there been any reports on Grimm activity?"

"I…" the tech in question wheeled back towards his monitor and quickly read through it. "None, sir. There has been no Grimm activity around Vale since the initial attack and repulsion."

"Why haven't they come back?" Ironwood muttered and Ozpin sighed.

"She has already fled," he declared and Ironwood turned to face him.

"You think she's working with Brainiac?"

"No, if she was then the Grimm would have joined in the assault as peers, not as enemies." Ozpin shook his head. "How or why, I do not know. Maybe she managed to use what remains of her powers to escape her imprisonment. Perhaps he managed to succeed where we have failed and located her for either capture or elimination. Or, more worrisome, some other outside party took her. I do not know which is more likely, and that terrifies me."

"I…" Ironwood walked back over to the table, the others following him. "I know what you want me to do. You want me to surrender, attempt to save as many lives as I can in the hopes he'll be merciful. But I can't, not after what he did to Shade, Mistral, Kuo Kuana…Atlas." His breath hitched at the mention of his destroyed home, but he soldiered on. "If Vale… If Remnant is going to fall, then we're going to make the bastard bleed when he does it."

Ozpin sighed. "I wasn't going to suggest we surrender. All of us agree that the possibility of peaceful coexistence with Brainiac vanished along with Shade. I was going to suggest that we consider other options." Ironwood groaned and shook his head, knowing exactly where Ozpin was going once again.

"Ozpin, we've been over this. A boarding action is suicidal folly, and I will not authorize that."

"James, please," Tai pleaded. "I don't like the idea any more than you do, but—"

"Sir!" a tech called out to them. "A massive force is bearing down on the defensive perimeter! Defensive points Delta, Gamma, Epsilon, Sigma and Omega! They are larger than estimates predicted!"

"What!" Ironwood looked at the map to see what the tech was referring to. What he saw caused his heart to seize. An unending wall of purple was racing towards the thin green wall. He looked at Ozpin, looking for guidance, only to feel a hand clasp his own. He looked to the side to see Glynda's sad green eyes boring into his own, and he sighed.

"I am ordering the activation of Plan G," he declared to gasps all around. "Evacuate all personnel to Beacon and other safe zones within the line, and have the  _Pride of Atlas_  launch all remaining munitions upon the city."

"Sir, that…that will destroy half the city!"

"And take as many of them out as we can along with it," Ironwood's response was firm and the tech gulped.

"I…yes, sir. Right away." The techs began radioing pilots and officers, informing them of their upcoming orders, while Ironwood sagged downward.

"Dammit." Ironwood felt Ozpin place a comforting hand on his shoulder. It didn't help in the least. "First, we lose Shade. Then, we lose all the other kingdoms, and now…we lose everything." Qrow offered his flask to the general who, after taking a moment to look at it, took the container and began to drink.

* * *

 

After the APC dropped the students at Epsilon, the air was quiet. Only the sound of distant gunfire and explosions could be heard, for none were speaking. They toiled away as they prepared, placing charges and setting up vantage points.

"…this is such Grimm shit," Yang muttered as she hefted another concrete slab into position. Things weren't supposed to end this way.

"I agree with that," Jaune said as he helped her set up the wall. "You know, when I came here, I thought many things would happen. I thought I'd fight Grimm, get stronger, maybe get a girlfriend. Oh yeah, get caught for using forged transcripts."

"You used forged transcripts?" Yang raised an eyebrow, and Jaune shrugged.

"Yeah, I did, like a dumbass, but it doesn't really matter now…" Jaune trailed off in regret and worry. He wondered whether or not his family managed to make it to safety.

"…No, no it doesn't." Yang nodded, sensing his distress. She decided that trying to add some joviality to the situation was appropriate. "Does explain a lot of things, though."

"Yeah… Still, I didn't expect this."

"None of us did," Ren said, setting up a pile of sandbags.

"The alien invasion, or the end of the world?" Blake asked as she broke down a wall to mount a heavy autocannon turret, courtesy of the APC crew.

"Both," Weiss answered as she used her glyphs to lift up rubble to form part of the wall.

"Don't say that," Ruby chastised her team. "The world's not going to end. You'll see!" She tried to sound hopeful, but that hope was quickly disappearing and they could tell. Nora's optimism, once a shining light, was now gone as she silently placed charges.

Jaune sighed. "Ruby, I—" He was cut off by the crackle of his radio, and he quickly brought it to ear. "This is Jaune."

" _All personnel, we are activating Plan G. All forces are to evacuate immediately to minimum safe distance before rendezvousing at Beacon Academy,_ " a voice over the radio said.

"What did he just say?" Yang asked, incensed at the order. "Did he just say to retreat?"

"Say again? You are telling us to retreat?" Jaune asked over the radio.

" _That is affirmative, huntsmen. Your orders are evacuate immediately. A bullhead is on its way to your position. ETA, ten minutes._ "

"I…yes, sir." Jaune clicked off the radio and everyone remained silent. Finally, Nora softly spoke.

"This is it," she said, all hope now gone. "This is the end. We've lost."

"We have  _not_  lost yet!" Ruby shouted, drawing everyone's attention. "Not while we can still…" Ruby stopped as tears formed on her eyes. At once, her sister embraced her as the youngest of them began to cry. Everyone looked on with sadness, and Jaune tore his gaze away and towards the city beyond their makeshift wall. It occurred to him then that it might very well be the last time he did so, and he tried to burn it into his memory.

"Wait…" Jaune softly said as something caught his eye. Blake turned to look at him and walked over.

"What is it?" she asked, trying to see what he saw.

"I thought I saw something…there." He pointed to a building a couple hundred meters away that was collapsed into a pile of rubble, and Blake strained her eyes to see.

"Ruby?" she softly asked. "Can I see Crescent Rose for a second?"

"Uh…" Ruby wiped away tears and removed herself from her sister's embrace. "Sure. Why?"

"I need to see something." Instead of handing the sniper over, Ruby collapsed it and extended the scope to look down herself, aiming where Blake and Jaune were staring.

"The collapsed building, right?" She asked. "I don't see… Wait, I see something." Ruby's declaration drew everyone's attention as they looked towards the building. "It looks like a… Oh, no."

"What? What is it?" Jaune asked in apprehension. His alarm grew when Ruby collapsed her weapon completely and leapt over the wall and sprinted towards the building. "Ruby! What are you doing?!"

"There's people trapped under there!" she shouted back as she neared the building, and everyone paled.

"Shit!" Jaune cursed. Yang was already over the wall, leaving the others behind, and Jaune could begin to feel the ground beneath them. He recognized the thuds as the sounds of the alien army marching towards them, and his eyes widened before narrowing.

"Pyrrha, get on top of that building and provide overwatch to Ruby and Yang!" Jaune ordered. "Nora, go out there and help clear the way! Ren, go with her and make sure nothing gets close!"

"On it."

"Aye-aye!

"Understood."

His team immediately left to perform their assigned tasks, leaving Jaune behind with Blake and Weiss behind.

"I'll go and slow them down any way I can," Weiss declared, rotating her Dust to ice. "Blake, stay here and guard the wall."

"Got it." Blake nodded as did the heiress, who used a glyph to leap over the wall and out of sight. The faunus turned towards Jaune, who was walking over to the emplaced autocannon. As the stomping grew louder, he realized they didn't have much time.

"Any suggestions?" Blake asked. Jaune responded by chambering the autocannon.

"Hold 'em off."

Ruby raced through the ruined streets towards the destroyed building. It was becoming clearer now, and she could see the hole in the collapsed rubble that formed a small cavern. She skidded to a halt in front of a narrow opening and peeked her head inside.

"Hello?" she called out soothingly. "It's okay, I'm a huntress. I'm here to get you all to safety." At first, she heard nothing. Then, she heard a quiet rusting and displacement of rubble, and a small head showed itself. It was a young girl, a wolf faunus judging by the pair of ears on her dark head.

"Hey," Ruby said. "It's okay, I'm here." The faunus girl said nothing but stared at Ruby, fear in her eyes. The huntress continued. "We're going to get you out, okay? How many are with you?" The girl remained silent before slowly shaking her head and extending one finger. Ruby's heart dropped but otherwise didn't show it.

"Just you?" The girl slowly nodded. "You're a very brave girl. Stay still, okay? I'm going to get you out."

"No…" the girl whimpered and retreated further. "Monsters out there."

"I know, there are monsters out here," Ruby said. "But I'm a huntress. Killing monsters is what I do, and trust me. I will not let any monsters harm you, okay?" The girl remained silent, but then moved closer to the hole. Smiling, Ruby outstretched her hand towards the young girl.

"Do you trust me?" she asked, and after a moment of hesitation, the girl took her hand and nodded. "Thank you. Now stay still. I'm going to get you out of there."

The girl nodded once more and released Ruby's hand. The red huntress then moved into a squat and placed her hands on the underside of the largest piece of rubble she could find. She attempted to heave, but the rubble was too heavy and it didn't budge.

"Urk!" Ruby grunted as she continued her attempt, her face turning red from the exertion. Suddenly, she heard footsteps behind her and a flash of yellow and pink, then two more pairs of hands joined her in lifting the rubble. Ruby smiled, immediately recognizing Yang and Nora, and slowly the three of them lifted the rubble off of the ground. A white glyph appeared over the girl, preventing a cave in as she stared at them in wonder.

"Come on, kid!" Yang said as she struggled to keep the debris aloft. "It's way better out here than it is in there."

"Trust us!" Nora continued.

"Come on." Ruby crouched down and extended her hand towards the girl. Slowly, the girl grabbed back and Ruby pulled her free. As soon as her feet passed the threshold, Nora and Yang released their grip and allowed the rubble to collapse back down and send up a cloud of dust. They all coughed and the girl clung to Ruby like a lifeline, and once the dust settled they all looked at her and smiled.

"Good job, kid," Yang smiled.

" _Guys, I hate to break the heartwarming moment_ ," they heard Jaune's voice over the radio, " _but they're almost here. You need to get over here, now._ "

"Jaune is right," Ren said. "We need to get behind the wall and get her to safety.

"Okay." Ruby nodded then turned towards the girl. "Can you walk?" she asked, and the girl shook her head. A quick look down revealed why and Ruby winced. The girl's right ankle was twisted and swollen. It likely broke when the building came down.

"Jaune, we have a problem," Yang called over the radio as she looked at the girl's injury. "She has a broken ankle. She ain't walking anywhere."

" _Dammit_ ," Jaune cursed. " _Okay, uhhh… There might be a nearby flight heading back to Beacon. She can hitch a ride with them._ "

"And we'll see them out," Ruby declared and the others nodded. "Okay then. Jaune, call it in. Weiss, slow them down any way you can. Yang, Nora, help her out. Ren, cover me."

"Got it, boss!" Yang mocked saluted alongside Nora as they ran out onto the street, taking cover behind concrete pillars. As they did, Weiss stabbed her rapier into the ground and created another wall of ice, cutting off the enemy advance. The stomps grew louder, and Ruby began to run towards Jaune, Blake, and Pyrrha, holding onto the girl as she did.

"Hit the deck!" she heard Jaune yell as the first attacks struck. The ground shook and the ice wall cracked as the alien drones threw themselves against the icy barricade. Weiss grit her teeth and added more ice to the wall, but she knew it wouldn't last much longer.

"Hurry!" she yelled through gritted teeth. Nora began shooting grenades over the wall, each explosion sending chunks of metal flying into the air. A few drones attempted to climb over the wall, only for Yang to shoot them down with shotgun shells.

Ruby ran faster and the girl started to whimper in fright. The huntress didn't have time to comfort her as she neared the wall, only for the building to the left of her to explode outward. She disappeared into a dash of petals to avoid the flying debris before reforming herself and gasping at a wave of drones rushing towards her.

"Shit!" Jaune yelled as he swiveled the autocannon towards them. He squeezed the trigger and opened fire. The heavy rounds tore through the alien horde, ripping them to shreds. He was joined by Pyrrha's sniper fire as Blake leapt over the wall towards Ruby and the young faunus. She gestured towards them, and Ruby ran over and finally cleared the wall, volleys of plasma racing towards her as she ran. Each shot caused the concrete to bubble but she managed to clear the concrete barrier without injury. The girl was now screaming at this point, but Ruby paid it no heed as she rushed the girl to safety.

"Stay here," she ordered to the young faunus as she placed her down on the ground. The girl looked up at her in awe as Ruby unfolded Crescent Rose into a scythe, twirled it around her and rested the scythe end on the ground behind her back, the handle sticking out above her shoulder. Ruby smiled at the girl's look then disappeared into a cloud of petals as she rushed towards the alien robots. She emerged in the middle of a large group of drones, who immediately turned to face her. Ruby acted first, twirling her weapon around in fast, wide arcs, cleaving the robots into many pieces that fell to the floor with a loud clatter. A barrage of plasma bolts shot towards her, but she fired her weapon at another drone, using the recoil to hurl herself away from the barrage and make the plasma strike another group of drones instead. As she landed, she pivoted and swiped her scythe at another group of drones, bisecting them at the waist.

Jaune continued to fire the autocannon non-stop, each round sending chunks of metal hurtling around like missiles. A few managed to fire off plasma bolts near him but he paid them no heed as he simply aimed his giant gun towards the shooter, disintegrating them instantly. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Nora, Yang, Ren, and Weiss rush back towards them, the ice beginning to break as they ran. Drones began to appear over the top, only for Pyrrha to shoot them down with her rifle as soon as they did, covering their escape. At the same time, Nora was firing grenades towards the horde in front of them, each explosion sending chunks of metal hurtling skyward in wide arcs.

Ren fired Stormflower as he ran, shooting multiple bullets into any drone that came his way. A few got close, only to receive a swift barrage of kicks and knife slashes from his pistol's bayonets for their trouble, cutting them into ribbons. He bicycle-kicked one drone's head off and sent it flying upward. In the same movement, he twirled and sliced another's arms and head off the torso, then spun around to deliver a powerful spin kick on the descending head from before. It hurtled outwards from the force and impacted the chest of another drone, caving it in and sending the robot flying backward into another group and knocking them onto the ground.

Yang was on them instantly, delivering a downward punch that struck the concrete with enough force to send waves of cement out from around her. Each wave sent the drones flying upward. They were quickly picked off by Pyrrha, who expertly fired upon each of them, each shot finding their mark and striking a critical area, usually the head. She aimed at the last one, only for purple jets to erupt out of the hands, feet, and back, up-righting it in midair and making it hover.

"They can fly!" Pyrrha shouted as she dove off the balcony, firing her rifle at the drone as she plummeted to the ground below. The shots penetrated the torso and sent it careening to the ground. Pyrrha rolled right before she struck the pavement, allowing her to land on her feet. She immediately used her momentum to hurl her rifle, now shifted into a spear, into another drone that had flown behind Jaune, impaling it to a wall.

"Thanks!" Jaune shouted over the roar of the autocannon. He body was shaking from the recoil, and the barrel was beginning to turn red hot, but he continued to fire. As he did, more and more robots fell to the ground with gaping holes in their bodies as the heavy rounds tore through them, but they kept coming over the ever increasing pile of robotic bodies. Jaune still kept up his fire, only to hear a dreadful clicking noise instead of a loud bang.

"Out of ammo!" He yelled as he finally let go of the trigger. He then had to duck underneath a barrage of plasma striking where his head once stood. Many hit the autocannon, warping the metal and rendering it useless. "Dammit!"

"Eyes above, Vomit Boy!" Yang shouted as she leapt over the concrete wall. A volley of plasma shot out behind her, a few hitting her but impacted only her Aura. A few drones attempted to climb over the barrier, only for Yang to shoot them off with a pair of shotgun blasts. She then took the time to quickly reload her weapon with more shells, a confident smirk on her face she completed the action effortlessly.

"That's always- Look out!" Jaune tackled Yang to the ground as a drone landed behind the yellow huntress. A volley of plasma ripped through the air where her head once stood and as the two blonds rose to their feet, more drones landed nearby and took aim. Yang quickly charged one and delivered a powerful haymaker on one, its strength boosted from a spent shotgun shell. At the same time, Jaune rushed another and sliced his sword through the skull, sending it to the ground as he twirled and brought up his shield to intercept another volley of plasma. The drone continued to fire as it walked towards him, but he held his ground and stood upright. Once the drone was in close enough range, he thrust forward and stabbed the torso of the drone, severing the spine and causing it to fall forward limply, ripping the sword from Jaune's hands in the process.

"Oh, come on!" he yelled as he flipped the drone over to pull the sword out. Just as he began to pull the sword free, he was tackled by another drone, forcing him to his back. It began to wail on him with heavy blows, forcing Jaune to cover his face with his shield. The powerful punches began to dent the scorched metal, and with a grunt he grabbed a robotic arm with his free hand, collapsed the shield, rotated it so that the pointed end was facing outward, then thrust the collapsed shield into the drone's skull. He then expanded it, causing the shield to erupt into its full size and shattering the skull in the process. Shakily, he rose to his feet and pulled his sword free of the fallen drone before rushing forward to join the others.

"Stay! Back!" Nora yelled as she rained hammer blows on the horde in front of her. She had long run out of grenades and thus had to resort to melee. That was fine with her. Allowed for some much needed dispensing of justifiable rage. She barely felt the sting of the plasma striking her as she charged towards another group and swung, the heavy blow sending their crumpled and mangled bodies flying. With one small group down, she ducked under another volley of bolts and charged towards the next group. Jumping up into the air, she slammed Magnhild's head onto the concrete road with enough force to send a shockwave across the pavement. Jagged spikes shot out from the ground, first in a narrow path then widening out, and impaled several drones in the way and sending others stumbling back. With a wild look on her face, Nora's hands lowered to the bottom of Magnhild's shaft and spun around in a circle. At the end of her spin, her hammer slammed into the concrete spikes, shattering them and sending the fragments flying forward. The shrapnel peppered any drone caught in the line of fire, holes and sparks appearing as each blow hit before they fell down.

"Strike!" Nora smiled before dodging another volley. Before she could counter, a red blur shot forward in a burst of rose petals before coalescing into Ruby. A scowl marred her face as she sliced through one drone after another. As she cleaved through the horde that surrounded them, gunshots rang out from her weapon with each swing, the powerful bullets punching massive holes through multiple drones at once. Several claws shot out towards her, but she burst into petals to dodge and reappeared to kick one in the head. Using it as a springboard, she launched herself into the air, firing as she descended. The drones exploded from the force of the heavy bullets, and as Ruby landed, her weapon shifted back into scythe-form. She became a swirl of bullets, metal flashes and rose petals as she swung, shot, and cleaved her way outwards like a hot knife through butter. When she ended, all that was left was metal limbs and split chassis.

"…Whoa," Jaune muttered as he gazed upon the scene, the action dying down for a precious moment. How long it would last, he had no idea, but he would cherish it. He then heard the screech of his radio and fumbled for it before bringing the device to his ear.

"This is RWBY/JNPR, in need of immediate evac from Defensive Point Epsilon!" Jaune yelled into the radio. "We have a wounded civilian child in need of immediate extraction!"

" _Roger that, RWBY/JNPR. E.T.A., sixty seconds. Be advised, we only have room for the civilian. You'll have to find your own bird, over,_ " a woman's voice said over the radio and Jaune nodded.

"Roger that, ma'am." Jaune clicked the radio off and jogged over to his friends, a noticeable limp in his stride. "Guys, a bullhead is on its way for the girl. Will be here in a minute, but we'll have to stay behind and wait for ours, which should be here in five minutes. Only enough room for the girl."

"Fine by me," Nora darkly muttered as she kicked a drone's head off its shattered body. It landed next to Yang's feet, who, after a moment of thought, brought her foot down upon it with a loud crunch. As the others all sat down, exhausted, Ruby walked back over to the cowering girl, still hidden in the same spot as before. She looked upon the huntress with wide eyes, filled with a mixture of fear and awe.

"Hey," Ruby gently said as she crouched, "someone's coming to pick up you, alright? They're going to get you to safety, but we have to stay here."

"Why?" the faunus girl asked, and Ruby smiled.

"Well, there's not enough room for us big kids, but you're the perfect size." Ruby stood up and smiled. "Besides, someone has to make sure the monsters don't get you."

The girl remained silent and stared straight into Ruby's silver eyes. Finally, she began to softly speak, "And that's your job."

"That's right, it's my job." Ruby's smile widened and she gently picked up the girl. Together, they walked towards the center of their defensive point and waited. Pretty soon, they could hear the roar of a bullhead's engines, and soon saw it descend towards them. It was flying low, with some smoke billowing from its engines, but nothing too serious. Still, Ruby could see how packed it was. They definitely wouldn't be able to fit all of them. When the bullhead finally landed, the doors opened and a squad of soldiers all hopped out, each one sporting scorch marks on their armor from the plasma bolts. Alongside them were a few students, ones she immediately recognized.

"Coco," Ruby announced as she walked over with the girl in hand. Ruby winced as she took in the sight of the second-year. Dark bags hung under her eyes, the signature shades that would've covered them long gone, and her once pristine outfit was now absolutely torn and shredded. Her chaingun was dented and bent in several places, and a large bruise covered her exposed left shoulder. It looked as though it extended to much of her torso, if not her entire body. Behind her, the rest of team CFVY and what appeared to be team CRDL, of all people, were not in much better shape. Russel Thrush in particular was lying in a stretcher, an IV line extending out of his arm while his bruised and battered team watched over him.

"Ruby," Coco said, cracking a faint smile. "Gods, you look like crap."

"Feel like it, too." Ruby smiled back and gently handed the girl to Coco. Her face then turned serious. "You guys stay safe, alright?"

"Don't worry, we will." Coco nodded, as did the girl.

"Thank you," she softly said with a faint smile, and Ruby smiled in turn.

"Just doing my job," Ruby said. "We'll see you all back at Beacon." What came after was left deliberately unsaid, but Coco nodded anyway.

"Sure thing." With one final nod, Coco turned around and walked back to the bullhead, stepped aboard then sat down with the girl on her lap. As soldiers piled back in and the doors slid closed, Coco and the girl waved goodbye, and then the aircraft took off towards Beacon. Ruby sighed as it flew further and further away before disappearing in a large smoke cloud. Now gone from view, she turned around and limbed back to the others, who were all watching the departing bullhead, even then.

"Guys," she called out to them. At once, their eyes swiveled towards her, and Ruby took in a deep breath. "I know it looks bad, like it's the end of the world. For all we know, it might very well be. But, look at what we just did. In all this chaos, we just saved a little girl. That  _means_  something. It means that we aren't done, that we aren't finished. We can, and will, pull through this! If we can save her, we can save everyone else." The others all perked up slightly at that, but their despair was still evident.

Steeling herself, Ruby let her eyes scan towards Brainiac's mothership as it hovered ominously over the city. Like the others, it too was a large skull-shaped vessel, only it dwarfed all the others. Every so often, an explosion could be heard as an Atlesian fighter attempted to shoot it down alongside the last remaining Atlesian warship, but so far nothing had worked. If she had to guess, a large, concentrated barrage might be able to punch a hole in its armor, but from what she had heard, the mothership's armor had some kind of regenerative property, quickly sealing any holes that were made. As such, such a barrage was discarded in favor of the so-called Plan G, which involved deploying every single Dust Missile and explosive left to level the city in a scorched earth tactic straight out of the Great War. It would destroy most of Vale.

Ruby sighed and broke herself out of her depressing thoughts. "Jaune, how much longer until our bullhead?"

"I guess…two more minutes, give or take." He shrugged then stood up, stretching out his arms then cautiously looking around, stopping at the mothership's visage. "That thing gives me the creeps."

"You and me, both," Yang concurred with a shiver. "It feels like its staring at me."

"Agreed," Ren stated. Noticing that Pyrrha was awfully quiet, the Mistralian boy turned to look at the champion, who was kneeling over a downed drone and holding its head in her hand. "Pyrrha, is something the matter?"

"…Yes, actually." She stood up, weapons in hand. "Does anyone else get the feeling that it was too easy?" The others all looked at each other in confusion then back at her.

"I'm…not sure I follow…?" Blake slowly got out. "That was… _incredibly_ difficult."

"The evacuation orders implied that an overwhelming force was headed straight towards us," Pyrrha countered then outstretched her arms around her. "I certainly don't feel overwhelmed. I am completely whelmed, actually."

"What are you saying?" Weiss arched up an eyebrow, and Pyrrha frowned.

"That "attack", the one we just fought off to rescue a little girl, was not the actual attack. This entire time, ever since Brainiac invaded, his entire plan has been throwing me off. If he simply wanted us destroyed, he could have easily done so without needing to expend any of this. No armies, no drones, just do what he did with Shade and be done with it. But, instead, he throws down these endless hordes of robots. Why?" The others paused then looked at each other, each uneasy. After a moment, Weiss' eyes widened then she sharply turned her body towards Beacon.

"Oh, Gods…" she gasped in utter terror.

"Weiss?" Ruby asked in concern.

"I finally get it. These drones aren't trying to exterminate us." Weiss gulped. "They're… _corralling_  us, forcing us into a singular point…making it easier to…" Weiss couldn't finish her sentence as tears began to gather at the corner of her eyes. Everyone looked towards Beacon with wide eyes as panic began to fill them.

"We have to warn them!" Ruby quickly declared. With a frantic nod, Jaune quickly pulled out his radio.

He never got the chance to speak as the ground suddenly erupted upward as drones jumped out of the pavement and surrounded them. Caught completely off guard, the students were helpless as the drones grabbed them with their metal claws, holding them in place while others began to beat them with savage punches and kicks. They all writhed in pain as they tried to break free, with Yang giving the greatest effort. All around her, she could see the others being beaten, their Aura's threatening to break with each blow. Yang, although feeling the pain, was merely biding her time as each blow powered her Semblance

' _Just a little more…_ ,' she thought to herself as she withstood the blows. She could see Ruby now as she too was being beaten. When, with a flash of red, her Aura broke and Ruby fell down with a yelp. Yang's eyes turned red as her hair began to blow brightly, but then everything stopped. The world seemed to go into slow motion as a drone raised its arm to fire upon Ruby, who looked up at it with fear filled eyes, only to suddenly stop. Instead, it grabbed her by the throat and lifted her up to eye level. It's purple eyes bored into her terrified yet defiant silver eyes. Then, startling everyone, it began to speak.

" _Genetic anomaly detected. Proceed with priority extraction_." The drones voice was monotone yet filled Yang and the others with dread. The word 'extraction' worried Yang the most as they all wondered what the drone had meant. Suddenly, a large shadow overcame them. Yang was unable to see, but she could tell it was the mothership.

"Yang…?" she and the others heard Ruby squeak out. Suddenly, a bright column of light beamed down onto Ruby and the drone holding her. As if gravity no longer held sway, Ruby and the drone began floating upwards. Now fully realizing what was about to happen, Ruby flailed, kicked and punched as she tried to free herself, to no avail.

"YANG!" she shouted as she entered the ship. Yang and the others stared helplessly as the ship flew away, straight towards Beacon Academy. As it did, Yang's vision turned red, and her hair glowed as intensely as the sun. Her whole body shook with rage as she forcibly rose to her feet, despite the raining of punches and kicks the drones were giving her.

"AAAAAGH!" she screamed and everything exploded into fire. The drones were sent flying off of her and her friends, chunks of metal hurtling skyward. Before anyone could react, Yang became a yellow blur as she started punching, kicking, and slamming into every single drone around her. A few tried to catch her again, only for Yang to grab the metal claw and use the drone like a ball-and-chain, twirling it around like a tornado. The drone slammed into multitudes of other drones, each blow denting the unfortunate drone until it was practically unrecognizable. The ambushers were quickly thinning, yet they still pressed on. The others were beginning to rise to their feet at this point, but Yang didn't care. She leapt high above the last group and, with a blast of Ember Celica, sent her slamming fist first into the concrete road. The resulting explosion shattered all nearby windows that weren't already shattered. Many drones were simply disintegrated from the pressure of the blast and heat while the ones on the far end flew into nearby walls and promptly flattened. As a mushroom cloud of dust rose, the light surrounding Yang finally died down, and everything went silent.

"Ruby…" Nora quietly muttered as she eyed the mothership. Off in the distance, they heard the roar of a bullhead as it approached, but none of them cared. Their attentions were squarely on the mothership, which now hung ominously over Beacon. The last Atlesian airship was firing its guns in futile defiance, but if Brainiac cared, he didn't show it.

Behind them, they faintly heard the bullhead land and the pilot shouting at them to get on board. Again, they didn't hear.

"He…he took my sister…" Yang softly spoke, her eyes still a soft blue. Her jaws then clenched and her teeth felt like they going to break, while her eyes turned blood-red. "HE TOOK! MY! SISTER!" she shouted with all the air in her lungs then turned to face the now frightened bullhead pilot. A quick look revealed he was the only person on the ship, and after a split second of thought, Yang stomped over to the bullhead. The others quickly followed after her.

"Ma'am, uh…" the pilot stammered as a furious Yang stared him down. "I am to, uh, evacuate you eight to Beacon Academy… Um, where's Leader Rose?"

"Brainiac took her." Yang's tone was sharp and to the point, and the pilot gulped.

"I'm sorry for your loss." Yang's silent stare was her only response, but the pilot pressed on. "Ma'am, I'm under orders to evacuate you all to Beacon. Plan G is about to commence, and—"

"You're not taking us to Beacon," Yang cut him off, causing him to sputter.

"What? I… I am under orders to—"

"You're not. Taking us. To Beacon," Yang repeated with added emphasis, her red eyes boring into his own. "That purple asshole kidnapped my sister, and took her aboard the mothership. You are going to get me inside."

"Us," Jaune quickly interjected. "You're going to get us inside." Yang looked back at her fellow blond. He nodded at her, as did all the others. Yang nodded back then looked right back at the pilot.

"Ma'am, I… I am under orders to…!" Yang's grip on the pilot intensified and he grew silent as she pulled him closer.

"Let me make this very clear," she whispered. "Either you get us on that ship, or I tie you up in the back and fly it in myself. You got that?" The pilot grew silent as he stared at the other students, who all glared at him or at the mothership. Finally, he nodded.

"Okay."

* * *

 

"James, listen to me," Ozpin pleaded as technicians hustled around the control center. All around them, scores of the last remaining bullheads flew into Beacon, dropped off their occupants before heading back out for more.

"I don't want to hear it, Ozpin," Ironwood waved him off. "We do not have the men or resources to board the mothership and destroy it from the inside. Doing so would be a suicide mission."

"And yet you're willing to destroy half of Vale in a stupid scorched earth tactic?" Qrow accused. "For Gods' sake, man, face it! Plan G won't work! This might!"

"Who would you suggest we send in, then?" Ironwood turned around to face Qrow directly. "In case you haven't noticed, all of our best fighters are either incapacitated, dead, or missing in action. You, Glynda, and Tai are too heavily injured for us to send any of you in, with Port and Oobleck in similar states, while Ozpin and I are needed to coordinate the defense. I could send in Winter, but not without a full team to back her up."

"There are other options, James," Glynda softly said. "There are always other options."

Ironwood sighed regretfully. "I'm sorry, Glynda, but I just don't—"

"Sir!" a technician called out, cutting the general off and directing everyone's attention. "Bullhead RT2012 is heading off course!"

"What?" Ironwood wheeled around in surprise. He had specifically ordered that bullhead to evacuate teams RWBY and JNPR to Beacon, one last favor for old comrades. To hear it was going off course immediately rang alarm bells in his head.

"That's Ruby and Yang's flight," Tai muttered, alarm filling his voice. The four immediately navigated their way towards the tech, who was frantically talking over the radio.

"Pilot, say again? Ruby Rose has been what?" the technician asked for clarification, Qrow's and Tai's increasing looks of panic going unnoticed by him.

" _Ruby Rose has been captured by Brainiac and brought aboard the mothership! I repeat, Ruby Rose has been captured by Brainiac and brought aboard the mothership!_ " The pilot's voice echoed across the room as everyone grew silent. Ironwood, Ozpin, and Glynda all turned to look at the two men, who were now staring into the radio with terror filled eyes. They could practically hear their heartbeats, even from here.

"No…" they both breathed out, their voices barely above a whisper. Ironwood couldn't blame them, but he had to remain objective.

" _We are deviating from Beacon to mount a rescue expedition onto the mothership! Requesting immediate air support and cover!"_  the pilot shouted over the radio. At once, Qrow turned towards Ironwood, as did everyone else. Ironwood stared back at Qrow before turning towards Ozpin then back at the technician. He tapped on his shoulder, who handed the radio to the general.

"Pilot, this is General Ironwood. You are to deviate from your present course and fly to Beacon immediately."

"WHAT!?" the brothers-in-law roared simultaneously.

"James, you're letting her die!" Glynda accused.

"And if I let them proceed, how many more will instead?" he shot back. "I'm sorry, but—"

"YOU DAMNED COWARD!" Qrow lunged for the general, forcing Glynda and Ozpin to hold him back. This, however, left Tai open to sock the general across the jawline with his cast-covered fist before Glynda finally managed to use her Semblance to keep him at bay. Ironwood rubbed his sore jaw as everyone glared at him, a mixture of rage and disappointment on their faces.

" _That's not happening, General_ ," Yang's voice suddenly spoke out over the radio, her voice harsh and uncompromising. " _With or without that air support, we're getting on that ship and getting my sister back._ " At once, Ironwood turned back towards the radio, deliberately ignoring the looks of pride on Qrow's and Tai's faces.

"Xiao Long, I am ordering you to-!"

"James, a word?" Ozpin interrupted the general. He glared at this fellow headmaster before he sighed and walked over. Once they had a modicum of privacy, Ozpin began to speak. "James, help them. Give them the support they need, or they will die."

"Ozpin, they are only children!" he protested. "Going in there will only get them killed! I will not have that on my conscience."

"And yet you were willing to send them into the field here in Vale?" Ozpin's accusation silenced any retort the general might have had. Ozpin pressed on. "James, we both know the real reason why the Academies exist. It was not to safeguard the Relics, but to train humanity's next generation of defenders. All applicants knew the risks, knew that they were likely to live short, violent lives in defense of their peers, yet they joined anyway. Going into Brainiac's ship is no different than fighting him on Vale's streets. At least in there, we have a chance at stopping this."

"I…"

"James, please," Ozpin put his hand on Ironwood's shoulder. "Have faith in my students. I do, and it hasn't failed me yet."

A pregnant pause ensued between the two of them. All eyes were on the pair, each wondering what the outcome would be.

"Um, sir?" the technician hesitantly called out. "They are requesting confirmation of that air support?"

"Request…," Ironwood paused and looked around once more, then sighed. "Gods forgive me… Request granted. Ensign, notify the  _Pride of Atlas_  and all teams: Plan G is canceled. All ordinance is to be fired upon the mothership. They'll need a breaching point if they want to get inside. I want all fighters scrambled. RT2012 will need all the air support they can get. Evacuations are to proceed as instructed, but until further notice, all air support is to be redirected."

"Yes, sir!" the technicians saluted then immediately complied with their orders. Ironwood sighed and rubbed the back of his neck before looking at Ozpin.

"You got your strike team," he muttered before redirecting his attention back to the holo-table. "Let's just hope they can pull off a miracle."

* * *

 

High above Beacon, a single Atlesian warship hovered overhead. Fighters, both Atlesian and alien, screamed around it as they fired upon each other. Inside, hundreds of missiles, already primed and readied for launch, were inserted into tubes by tired deckhands, the automated processes having long worn out. Barrels had rounds loaded into them, laser cannons were charged, and fresh fighters overloaded with bombs and missiles. They all knew it was to be the last act they would perform. Slowly, the warship aligned itself with against the massive mothership. Every barrel, laser, and missile aimed at a singular point on the spaceship's hull. As a single bullhead neared the vessel at top speed, the order was given, and the sky exploded. Lasers, bullets, and missiles leapt from the warship and impacted against the mothership hull. The explosion sent shockwaves that knocked many fighters out of the sky, sending them crashing onto the streets below. The bombardment did not ease. Fighters now joining in on the bombardment, unloading every missile and bomb they had onto the point, which by now had been obscured by a massive fireball. Alien fighters swatted many Atlesian fighters out of the sky and then turned their attention onto the Atlesian warship, something they had previously ignored. Despite the renewed bombardment on their weakened hull, the warship continued their assault until all stores were dry, all missiles launched, and all bullets spent. As the smoke cleared, a small hole could be seen on the ship, and the crew couldn't help but cheer as the bullhead, dodging alien fighters as best it could, flew inside, despite a few blasts making contact.

The crew continued to cheer as the bullhead disappeared, only to stop once the mothership fired upon the  _Pride of Atlas_ , killing all aboard.

* * *

 

"We're coming in too hot!" the pilot screamed as he navigated the smoking bullhead through the hole. It had already begun to seal itself as they flew inside, with chunks and bulkheads expanding to fill in the gap and forcing the pilot to bob, weave, and dive around them. They had been hit several times already, and by now a trail of fire followed them.

"Keep it together, man! We almost got this!" Yang shouted over the roar of the engine. Her fingers had turned white from the grip she had on her armrest, and the seatbelt had begun to dig into her skin. Behind her in the cabin, the others were experiencing the same thing. Jaune in particular was holding tightly onto a nearby bar, his eyes closed shut. Pyrrha was clinging onto him tightly, as was Nora with Ren and Blake with Weiss. A loud explosion then rocked the bullhead, almost knocking everyone loose.

"What was that?!" Jaune shrieked.

"Dammit! I've lost steering!" the pilot shouted as he attempted to retain control. Up ahead, they saw a blinding light in front of them which they soon passed through. As their eyes adjusted, they found themselves surrounded by vast metal walls and platforms, lines of computer code running up the walls like water. They also realized they were heading towards a large catwalk at a very high speed, and they all subconsciously tensed.

"Brace for impact!" was the last thing any of them heard before everything went black.

* * *

 

"Ugh," Yang groaned as she slowly regained consciousness. Her memory was hazy, and she struggled to remember where she was and why. In an attempt to gather her bearings, she looked at the space around her and saw that she was lying in the co-pilot's seat of a crashed bullhead. They were lying on their side on a large metal catwalk. The walls around them were of a dark purple-grey metal, with green lines of code running up along its walls. At once, the memories came flooding back, and with a jolt Yang sat up straight, ripping the seatbelt off of her as she did. She looked to her left to look at the pilot, ready to rouse him, only to see his neck at an awkward angle, his chest unmoving.

"Dammit," she muttered and closed her eyes. She gave the pilot a moment of silence out of respect before turning around to look back into the cabin. Inside, she saw her friends sprawled on the floor, lying in a tangled heap of bodies. Gently, Yang maneuvered herself down into the cabin and closely examined them. To her immense relief, they were all breathing, and it appeared that their Aura's took the impact.

"Thank the Gods… Guys, guys wake up! Ruby needs us!" she gently shook Jaune in an attempt to rouse him. Soon enough, he began to groan and stir, to which Yang smiled.

"Yang? What happ… Oh, God," Jaune muttered as the memories came back. The others began to stir, rouse, and remember in turn. Soon, they exited the crashed bullhead and stood apart from it, carefully looking around and scanning for enemies.

"So, we're inside," Blake said. "What now?"

"Simple," Yang replied. "We find Ruby then blow this place straight to Hell."

"All right," Nora nodded enthusiastically. Jaune, on the other hand, looked more and more concerned.

"Uh, one problem with that. This ship is  _huge_." Jaune's voice echoed along the walls, emphasizing his point. "Where do we even start?"

Yang moved to speak, but then stopped herself. He was right, after all. This ship was massive, and trying to find the right room would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. It would be next to impossible. Briefly, the thought of them splitting up to cover more ground crossed her mind before she crumpled it up and trashed it. Splitting up in the heart of Brainiac's ship was probably the worst idea in the world, and she was not about to fall into that horror movie cliché.

"Well," she finally spoke up, "guess we're going to have to search the old fashioned way. Come on, let's start looking."

With a collective nod, the group turned and ran away from the crash site. Right now, the only thing on their mind was finding Ruby, and nothing else mattered.

* * *

 

Ruby jolted away as the world exploded into light around her. It was blinding and she couldn't move her arms or legs. Above her, white florescent lights shone straight into her eyes, and everything felt cold to the touch.

"Where…where am I?" she thought aloud as she lifted her head up to try and see more clearly. As she did, she noticed thick metal bands around her wrists and ankles, strapping her to a metal table. Equipment lied around her, a few showing a diagram of a DNA strand, with certain segments appearing to be highlighted.

"What is this?"

"It is your DNA," a metallic voice answered, causing Ruby to flinch. She turned her head towards the source, and her heart leapt into her throat. There, on the other side of the room and manipulating a monitor, was the person responsible for everything.

"Brainiac…" Ruby glared at the green-skinned alien, who turned his attention away from the monitor to look straight at her.

"Yes, I am Brainiac. You are Ruby Rose."

"You know who I am?"

"I do. My drones detected a genetic anomaly within you, one that piqued my curiosity. It is the only reason why you are still alive."

"Forgive me if I don't feel grateful."

"I suppose, from your perspective, that my actions may not warrant such a feeling." Brainiac turned back towards the monitor. "No matter. Your 'emotions' are the result of an underdeveloped cerebral construct, incapable of seeing the bigger picture."

"Tell me," Ruby growled, "what 'bigger picture' can possibly exist to justify your murder of millions!" Brainiac merely waved her off, dismissing her shouting like he was dealing with an unruly child.

"You wouldn't understand, so I won't even bother." He finished manipulating the monitor in front of him and backed away. A series of beeps greeted him, and with a contemplating look, he turned towards Ruby once again. "I do not know what secrets lie in your silver eyes, but I will find them."

With those parting words, Brainiac left, leaving Ruby strapped to the metal table. As he did, she heard a whirling noise above her, and with no small amount of fear saw a floating orb materialize above her. Spiked prongs hung out from its body, and a now trembling Ruby noticed how they were pointed at her. With increasing alarm, she noticed how the orb began to descend towards her, and something told her it wasn't for a pleasant experience. She whipped her head around, trying to find a way out of her predicament, when a red rose petal caught her attention. In her haste, she had accidentally used her Semblance, which meant at least part of her Aura was back. That realization gave Ruby an idea.

Quickly, Ruby began to vibrate herself, clouds of rose petals billowing off of her. The orb descended ever closer, the metal prongs spinning in anticipation. Just before it could reach Ruby, her hand was suddenly freed from the metal strap, having turned into rose petals and rematerialized outside of her bonds. Immediately, Ruby grabbed the vibrating drone and slammed it into her other bond, shattering both of them. She quickly sat up straight and grasped one of the dislodged prongs, reinforcing it with her Aura before driving it into the other bonds, freeing her feet one after another. Now free, she hopped off the table and began to look around. A sigh of relief escaped her as she saw the collapsed form of Crescent Rose lying on a table, two magazines of at most ten rounds each lying next to it. If she had to guess, he wanted to examine the inner workings of it, or at the very least the Dust rounds. All in all, she didn't care what his reasons were. He was a monster, and that was the end of it.

Besides, right now, the only thing she cared about was getting back to her team. With that in mind, and Crescent Rose now unfolded into its scythe, she ran out of the room and down the corridor, only to run right into a patrol of drones. They all stared at each other, an uncomfortable atmosphere developing between them.

"Hehheheh, well… This is awkward," Ruby chuckled, only to duck under a metal claw shooting out towards her. With a yelp, she dodged another one then responded with bursting into petals, reforming behind the patrol. With one clean sweep, she bisected the drones at the waist and as they fell lifeless to the floor, she ran in the opposite direction.

* * *

 

"Gods, this thing is big," Jaune whispered as they ran through the halls. They had been running through the corridors for quite some time now. A few times they heard the marching of a drone patrol, but the students had so far managed to avoid them. How, exactly, they did not know, but they weren't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

"Yeah, but where are all the rooms?" Weiss quietly replied. That was something that all of them had noticed pretty quickly. For the size of the ship, there weren't many rooms. In fact, they hadn't come across one. If the heiress had to guess, that was simply due to the lack of any crew. Brainiac was likely the only living thing on the entire ship, outside of themselves, of course. There simply wasn't any need for a medical or crew quarters. Likely, the only rooms in this ship were for the engines, the bridge, and a laboratory, given what the drone had said about Ruby having a genetic anomaly and needing to be studied. That was what they were looking for.

Through deductive reasoning, they had figured that they had breached the ship towards the front end. Near its 'face', as Yang had described it. Based off of what limited knowledge they had, they figured that the bridge, if there was one, would be at the top of the ship while the engine room would be on the back end or bottom. That left the middle for the laboratory, which is where they were heading to now.

"When I get my hands on him," Yang growled. Her eyes were still red, having never shifted back to their normal lilac since Ruby was captured. None of them blamed her. After all, they felt the exact same way.

"We'll make him pay, Yang. Don't worry." Jaune patted her shoulder as they ran. She smiled faintly at the gesture while never ceasing her stride. They rounded another corner and it was intersecting a ramped hallway. After a moment's hesitation, the group turned left and headed downward. The ramp proved to be long and eventually turned into a spiral, but the group didn't mind. In actuality, the downward slope increased their speed, allowing them to reach the bottom more quickly. As they did, they were greeted by a large metal door with three purple dots sitting in the middle. Once again, they formed the triangle on Brainiac's head. They could only guess it was a symbol of some kind.

"If I were a betting woman," Pyrrha began as she gazed up at the door, "this is probably the lab."

"I'll take that bet." Yang walked forward and cracked her knuckles, only for Pyrrha to block her path with an outstretched sword.

"Allow me, Yang." Pyrrha smiled and sheathed her weapons. She gracefully walked forward to the door, placing her hands along its creased center. After taking a deep breath, Pyrrha began to strain herself and attempted to pry the doors open. At first, nothing happened, but then a faint black glow spread from Pyrrha's hands and up through the crease. A metallic groan was heard and metal squealed as, slowly but surely, Pyrrha forced the large doors to open.

"Oh my…god…" Jaune and the others gasped at the power Pyrrha was exhuming. Rivers of sweat rained down Pyrrha's head and halfway through she had collapsed onto her knees. Still, she kept up her efforts, despite beginning to keen in agony from the exertion. Finally, with one final push, she forced the metal doors to fully open and bent them around the edges, preventing it from closing behind them.

"There…opened…." Pyrrha was panting now, completely exhausted. Her vision was blurry and her ears rang, but she still heard faint footsteps walk towards her. Looking up, she saw the gloved hand of Jaune reaching down towards her, and with a smile she took it.

"That was… Thank you, Pyrrha." He helped her to her feet. Every day, it seemed his partner had more surprises within her.

"That was awesome, P-Money," Yang patted Pyrrha's shoulder before walking in. "Let's hope Ruby heard it."

"You think she'll come here? Even though she was-?"

"Trust me, I know my sister. He couldn't hold her for long." With a nod of silent agreement between the two of them, Jaune and Pyrrha followed after her, their weapons at the ready. Still exhausted, Pyrrha stayed near the back of the group, Jaune staying near her the entire time.

"This is definitely the lab," Weiss observed as she looked over the room. Inside there were more monitors and machines than she could count. Tubes, both big and small, lined the walls or in special pods, many with things Weiss didn't have an inkling of an idea on what they were. A few Dust crystals were being worked on by spherical drones with metal prods, but otherwise paid no attention to them. Briefly, she thought about how Brainiac was able to keep the Dust from going inert outside of Remnant's atmosphere, but quickly chalked it up to the ship still being in Remnant's atmosphere. Hopefully, they wouldn't break through it before they found Ruby and destroyed this thing. She paused at another collection of tubes, and their contents caused her to pale.

"Found the Grimm…" Weiss noted. Like with the Dust, spherical drones were examining the Grimm closely, with monitors displaying data in some alien language she couldn't hope to understand. The captive beasts were suspended in unrecognizable energy fields, unable to do so much as twitch, let alone bash their way to freedom or death as they would against normal restraints. Next to them were large vats filled with a viscous black liquid. In total, Weiss and the others saw at least a thousand specimens of different types, probably more. At the very least, it explained why the Grimm were gone from Vale: he had captured them for study.

When Brainiac first attacked, the resulting panic brought about the largest Grimm horde in recorded history. They had swarmed Vale in a sea of black, and she could only assume the other Kingdoms as well. Mountain Glenn had even exploded to reveal a massive Grimm Dragon, one that was so large, Grimm were spawning from its body. For a moment, everyone thought Brainiac had purposefully attracted the Grimm, that he was in league with them or perhaps even their master. That only lasted until small craft began abducting as many Grimm as possible, with many more being destroyed. This turned the Battle of Vale into a three-way brawl as the defenders fought off the Grimm and Brainiac's forces, who in turn fought both each other and the defenders. Eventually, though, the largest of Brainiac's ships managed to destroy the Grimm Dragon, albeit with considerable damage to its structural integrity. Damage that Ironwood readily exploited, destroying the large vessel and buying Vale some much needed reprieve. At the same time, the Grimm retreated from Vale, and hadn't been seen since.

"But where's Ruby?" Ren asked as he inspected another machine. This one intrigued him, as it was two large metal prongs embedded into the ground. In between the prongs, a clear, glass-like diamond was suspended in mid-air. What most intrigued him was the fact that, through the diamond, he couldn't see the metal hull of the ship they were on. Instead, he saw a never ending black void. It wasn't space, for there were no stars, no nebulas or planets. Just a vast void of nothing.

"Huh, what's that?" Nora pointed out into the diamond, drawing everyone's attention. Ren narrowed his eyes, trying to get a better look. Soon enough, he saw what Nora was referring to. Off in the distance, he saw a single entity. It was a massive, bipedal creature with large bone-white spikes sprouting off of its grey muscular body. White hair ringed the side of its bald head, but what was most striking were its eyes. They bored straight into everyone, and despite the distance between them, they could feel its hatred for everyone. A feeling that, should it get out, it would readily kill them all without a second thought was easily conveyed. Despite the superficial similarities, they instinctively knew that this being was far beyond any Grimm they'd have the misfortune of meeting.

"Let's…not mess with that thing…" Blake backed away from the imposing creature, as did the others. Even after they left the diamond behind, they could still feel its gaze follow them, and they shivered. As they walked on, they came across a pedestal with a strange metal cube lying atop it.

"Huh, wonder what this is?" Weiss asked as she picked it up. Immediately, she could feel the power within, more than anything she had ever held, and she was awed. "It's like…a million Dust crystals all packed into one. No, that's far too little."

"Think it's a bomb?" Blake asked as she eyed it, but Weiss shook her head.

"No, I don't think so. Whatever this is, it isn't a bomb."

"Still, it's obviously important," Yang said. "Take it with us. Better than letting Smart-Ass hold onto it."

"Alright," Weiss agreed and tucked the box under her arm. The group continued to walk further into the lab before they came across another large door. Yang pursed her lips and whistled before tapping her chin, deep in thought.

"Pyrrha, think you can open this one?" Yang asked as she looked up at the imposing threshold. Pyrrha shook her head.

"I don't think I can. That last door took a lot out of me." Pyrrha sounded remorseful, but Yang didn't hold it against her.

"It's okay, don't strain yourself. Nora, Vomit Boy, help me with this."

"When are you going to stop calling me Vomit Boy?" Jaune asked as he holstered his weapon.

"When you stop responding to it." Yang shot a smile at the boy who rolled his eyes. Nora chuckled at their antics before joining them. Together, with Jaune and Nora on one side and Yang at the other, they looked towards Weiss with a nod, who nodded in turn. The heiress them summoned a glyph and wedged it between the two halves of the door, and together they began to pull.

"Gods, this is heavy!" Jaune grunted as he continued to pry the door open. Slowly, a narrow gap appeared and was held in place.

"Go!" Yang ordered through the strain. Quickly, the other students all piled trough the gap, followed by Jaune, Nora, and finally Yang. As they let go, the doors groaned and tried to close on them, but a quick push to the side by the three kept them open. With heavy pants they hung down, propping their hands on their knees as they caught their breath.

"Phew…" Jaune sighed and wiped away a sheen of sweat on his brow. "That was…something."

"I'll say, Mr. Muscles," Nora laughed as she stood up straight then turned to face the others, who were staring at them. "So, where to–"

"Yang?" a soft voice sounded behind them. Immediately, they all turned around and saw its source, and Yang's eyes widened. There, on the other side of the door, they saw Ruby, alive and well. Without saying a word, Yang rushed forward as did her sister, who immediately embraced each other and cried. They collapsed onto their knees as they continued to cry tears of relief.

"How…how did you get out?" Yang asked as she slowly regained her composure.

"Brainiac, he… he left me alone," Ruby began to explain through her sniffles. "I was strapped to a table but I was able to use my Semblance to escape! I ran, trying to find a way out, but then I heard this loud noise coming from below. I got here as fast as I could." Ruby buried her face into Yang's shoulder as she cried again. "I was so scared…"

"It's okay, I'm here now." Yang rubbed the top of Ruby's head. "He's not going to hurt you or anyone else." The two continued to hug and Ruby allowed herself to smile.

"Guys… You need to see this," Jaune's voice rang out, his tone horrified. Everyone turned to look at him, seeing that he was standing in front of a glowing wall. From their position, they couldn't see what lied within the wall, but from his appalled expression, it couldn't have been good.

"What? What is… Oh my god…" Weiss covered her mouth in shock and horror as she walked up to Jaune, seeing exactly what he had been seeing.

"Jaune? Weiss?" Ruby shot up and out of Yang's arms while the others ran towards them. As they caught up and saw the glowing wall, they all gasped at the sight before them.

"It's…the cities…" Jaune couldn't even finish his sentence. There, inside of a deep cavern, floated large glass spheres, each glowing with a multitude of different lights. Inside those glass spheres, each larger than his chest, lied a miniaturized city. He would have dismissed them for models had he not seen the tiny creatures staring out of the spheres and at him.

"Atlas…Shade…Mistral…Kuo Kuana…" Blake breathed out heavily as she recognized the greatest of Remnant' cities. Along with them, she saw thousands of other cities, each with different, alien designs and architectures from what she could only assume where an equal number of alien planets. Inside each sphere, she could also see thousands of creatures, some familiar yet most completely alien, staring straight at her. Whether it was out of hope, desperation, or curiosity, she did not know.

"He wasn't destroying them…" Ren realized in abject horror. "He was shrinking them… Putting them into bottles…"

"That…bastard…" Yang seethed with rage before gasping. "He's going to do that to Vale. Oh, shit! We forgot to warn them!" With wide eyes, Jaune began to fumble for the radio and pulled it out, only to grit his teeth as he noted the busted device.

"Must have broken in the crash. Damnit!" he threw the broken device to the ground and cursed their tunnel vision.

"We've got to get to the bridge!" Ruby declared and ran to the open door. "We still have time to stop this!"

"What about the other cities?" Blake asked as she and the others ran after the red huntress.

"One problem at a time!" Ruby answered as they all sprinted out of the lab and up the spiraling ramp. Their legs strained as they continued to run upwards, never ceasing even as the spiral straightened. A few drones rounded a corner as they ran by and prepared to attack them, only for Ruby to decapitate them with a quick burst of petals before she continued to run upwards. As they did, they didn't notice how the metal box began to lightly glow and pulsate, their eyes only on their goal. Soon, the ramp began to spiral again, yet they still ran up it. Their legs began to burn as the ramp finally flattened out, ending in front of another large door. While the others paused to catch their breath, Yang continued forward and began to pound on the large door, her fists creating large dents.

"That will not be necessary," a monotone voice interrupted Yang's pounding as the doors hissed open. Inside, standing in front of a large glass screen overlooking a burning Remnant, was Brainiac. Metal cables were attached to his body from various different ports and outlets, and the circles on his forehead glowed intensely. "It appears that I underestimated your Aura's recovery period. That mistake will not happen again."

"Brainiac…" Yang hissed as her eyes turned red once more while Weiss quickly hid the metal box behind her back, suspended on a small glyph. "Do you even realize what you've done!?"

"You've seen my preservation," he plainly replied, as if he didn't care they were in his presence.

"Preservation?" Jaune walked forward, shock and disbelief on his face. "You call shrunken cities, with people inside, a 'preservation'!?"

"Yes," Brainiac replied, his back still turned to the students. "I do not expect you to understand my work, but what I do prevents cultures from dying and their accumulated knowledge from being lost."

"Enlighten. Us." Ren hissed as he drew Stormflower. "How does bottling cities 'preserve' my people?!"

"Hmm," Brainiac paused. A hiss of air escaped the ports on his body as, one by one, the cables detached themselves from his body. "Do you know what the most unique aspect of a civilization is? It is their culture, the sum of all the collected knowledge available to them. What I do is ensure that knowledge can last."

"What does bottling cities have to do with knowledge!?" Ruby snarled as she chambered her weapon, aiming it squarely on Brainiac's forehead. Once again, he didn't care.

"By preserving those cities, the greatest examples of a planet's culture, I am able to prevent that knowledge from dying. Your culture was on the cusp of collapse before I arrived, both from internal and external pressures. If not the Grimm by themselves, then then your societal rifts would have ripped it apart on its own and consumed itself, with the Grimm finishing you off. Now, those pressures cannot threaten it, and your culture is preserved for eternity within my archives."

"How noble." Weiss chambered her last remaining stores of Dust and readied herself. Beside her, Blake chambered Gambol Shroud and crouched down, holding both swords in her hands while Yang cocked Ember Celica, arms raised in a fighting posture.

"This is your last warning," Ruby began to say as Nora hefted her hammer. "Put our cities back and leave. Now."

"Or you'll kill me?" Brainiac asked, his face expressionless.

"That's the idea," Nora darkly answered.

"Others far greater than you have tried. They all failed." Brainiac's declaration was met with silence. Then, everyone sprang forward as they charged the green alien.

Ruby, using her Semblance, was the first to arrive as she burst into petals then reformed above the alien menace. As she began to fall down, she began to fire her weapon at him, the heavy caliber bullets ricocheting off of his armor. She frowned, noting how they had no effect. It appeared that Brainiac's armor was much more durable than his drones. Deciding that a change in tactics was in order, she expanded Crescent Rose back into its scythe mode and closed the gap between them, the bullets of her friends weapons pinging off of his armor, also doing nothing. They did, however, keep him distracted long enough for her to make contact. While she wasn't heavy enough to drive him to the ground, she was able to kick his head and use it as a springboard. With a flipping twirl, she swung her blade upwards and knocked into his chin, snapping his head upwards. As her feet touched the ground, she leapt forward to deliver a stab to where she assumed his heart was, only for the metallic alien to shift his body to the side and wrap his arm around Ruby's side. Helpless, she flailed as he lifted her up and brought her back down, stomach first, onto his raised knee. The air escaped from Ruby's lungs from the powerful blow, and she couldn't resist as he threw her to the side like discarded trash, ignoring the bullets still pinging off of his armor as he turned towards the others. As he did, Yang shot a shell behind her, using the recoil to close the gap just as he turned to face her.

"HUAAH!" Yang shouted as she delivered a flying punch to Brainiac, knocking him across the jawline. Not letting up, she rained down blows upon his chest, each blow rocking him back and forth as he was knocked into a nearby wall. He attempted to counter, only for a sheet of ice to freeze his arm solid. Leaping over her partner, Blake kicked Brainiac's face as hard as she could. His head snapped back but quickly recovered. With minimal exertion, he freed his arm from the block of ice and prepared to throw a punch of his own, only for Jaune to shield-charge the alien, knocking him off balance. Lying on top of the alien, Jaune began to slam down with his shield, using it as a bludgeon before attempting to stab, only for his arm to be caught by Brainiac's. Rising to his feet, Brainiac hurled Jaune into Weiss, who with a cry was knocked to the ground, while he turned to deflect another blow from Yang. The metal box flew out its perch behind her back and skidded across the floor, and the pulsating glow grew slightly brighter.

"Enough of this," Brainiac muttered as he stomped towards the fallen students, only to be intercepted by gunfire. Ren charged him, forcing Brainiac to shield his face as the bullets impacted his arm. As Ren neared, Brainiac threw a punch, one that Ren nimbly dodged and kicked off of. He slash Brainiac across the face and tried to deliver a spin kick, only for Brainiac to catch his leg. With a yelp, Ren was spun and slammed into the ground, and before he could recover, Brainiac stomped on him hard enough to dent the floor.

"REN!" Nora screamed as she ran towards the alien. With his ever present deadpan look, he kicked the fallen boy towards Nora, knocking the breath out of her as they flew backwards. Quickly, she got to her feet and charged forward, hammer raised high as she attempted to strike him down, only for Brainiac to catch the hammer with his bare hands.

"A futile endeavor." He didn't give Nora a chance to reply as he punched her three times in the gut in rapid succession, shattering the remains of her Aura and causing her to cough up bile. She crumpled to the ground and whimpered, clutching her stomach in an attempt to stop the pain before she too was kicked away, this time into Jaune, who managed to catch her. He sat her down to a nursing Weiss, a nasty bruise forming on her face while he himself had a split lip. Warm blood trickled out of it, a faint taste of copper on his tongue, but he didn't care as he glared at Brainiac. Blake was continuing her assault, his blows being absorbed by Blake's Shadows, but he was catching on remarkably fast. As Blake attempted to avoid another blow, she was blindsided by a sideways kick to her back. She screamed as she flew out and impacted a nearby console, shattering it as she herself rolled across the ground before finally stopping. As she attempted to lift herself upward, her Aura finally flickered out and she collapsed in a heap.

"Blake!" Yang yelled as she and Pyrrha charged towards the alien. Pyrrha hurled her spear at the back of Brainiac's head, who sharply turned around and caught the spear inches from his face. Not missing a beat, Pyrrha leapt out and kicked him in the chin and wrenched the spear from his hands. As she spun, she hurled her shield which impacted his forehead and begun to swing her sword with expert skill and precision. Any blows he threw were subtly deflected by her Semblance as she was joined by Yang, who delivered a powerful uppercut to his chin and knocked him back. As he staggered, Yang continued her assault, only for the alien to dodge underneath, elbow her in the throat, and throw her to the side as she gasped for breath then turned back to face Pyrrha. He did not move towards her, and Pyrrha frowned slightly as he rubbed his chin, keeping her shield towards him.

"Interesting," he responded, confusing the champion. "You're using your Semblance to deflect my arms away from you, keeping you from harm." Pyrrha's eyes were wide now as he stood up straighter.

"No matter. I have ways to compensate." The way he said it frightened her, but before she could react a loud noise shrieked above her. Pyrrha shot her head upwards only to see a massive claw shooting down towards her. Without thinking and operating on instinct, Pyrrha leapt backwards out of the way, forcing herself to and curve her body as another claw lunged for her. Seeing how she was about to land head first onto the metal floor, she thrust out her hands and quickly performed a perfect handspring, using her momentum to kick Brainiac in the chest. He briefly staggered back, allowing Pyrrha to press her advantage as she swung her sword and punched with her shield. As another claw lunged for her, she ducked under it and grabbed hold of it with her Semblance. With great strain, she twisted the claw until it hurtled towards Brainiac, who immediately intercepted with another claw from above, the force crushing them both. He briefly frowned, the largest showing of emotion they had seen since he'd arrived, but his face quickly returned to his characteristic deadpan look. To Pyrrha's worry, he did not appear winded while she was panting, a sheen of sweat covering her body from the exertion. Still, with more sluggish movements, she charged towards Brainiac to continue her fight, and as he threw another punch she attempted to deflect, only for her Semblance to fail. In an instant, she realized exactly what he had done. He had thrown all of those claws at her to exhaust her, knowing that she would use her Semblance to avoid the attack and to try and turn it around on him, that the strain would tire her out considerably. She attempted to block with her arm, only for the blow to shatter the remains of her Aura. A loud crack was heard as her arm fractured, followed by a scream of pain that was silenced by another blow to her head, knocking her unconscious. As she fell to the ground, Brainiac, lifted her body and threw her to the side.

"Pyrrha!" Jaune screamed as he charged towards the alien, sword at the ready. He swung downwards, only for Brainiac to catch the blade in this hand. With the other, he delivered a heavy barrage of powerful blows to Jaune's head, eventually shattering his Aura and driving him into the ground, thoroughly unconscious. As he prepared to stomp on Jaune's head, Ruby, having finally recovered, intercepted the fallen boy in a cloud of petals while Weiss blocked his foot with her Glyph, entrapping it. While Ruby tended to her fallen friends, Weiss formed an array of Glyphs around Brainiac. Forming a final one behind her, she launched towards the metallic alien, delivering swift slices as she bounced from glyph to glyph, expending the last of her Dust with each strike before finally stopping. Shrugging off the elemental strikes, he turned towards her, his attention now squarely on the heiress and away from the others, as she had planned.

"Your family's Semblance is most fascinating. So different in use and function from all the others," Brainiac mused as he tore his foot away from the glyph. "It's study will be most enlightening."

"I would rather die."

"Your survival is not needed for this process." Immediately, Brainiac unleashed metal tentacles from his back which swarmed the heiress, wrapping themselves around her. Before she could respond, he pulled her in close to deliver a powerful blow to her head, which she narrowly blocked with a glyph. Without missing a beat, Brainiac kneed her in the gut then slammed her into the ground, followed by three swift punches. The third shattered her Aura and he threw her to the side. As he walked away towards Yang, he idly noted that the last remaining huntresses were shooting at him, as they had been the entire time, but he paid it no heed.

"Surrender now," he coldly ordered. "You must see that it is lost."

"Burn in Hell," Yang countered then shot forward at Brainiac with a shotgun blast, fist outstretched. As she neared, Brainiac turned to the side and outstretched his arm, clotheslining the huntress and flipping her onto the ground. To her credit, she quickly rose to her feet and charged again, delivering powerful punches to the alien, who swiftly deflected each blow before countering with swift jabs to her face and knocking her into a nearby console with enough force to shatter it into a shower of sparks. As Yang staggered, Brainiac grabbed her head and brought it down onto his rising knee, knocking her back and allowing him to punch her across the jawline and spinning her around in a daze. She barely noticed when Brainiac lifted her up off the ground then slammed her back down. Not finished, he grabbed the back of her jacket, lifted her up and spun before releasing her, sending her flying into a wall with a loud clang. At this, her Aura finally shattered, yet she still tried to rise off the ground defiantly before collapsing. Ruby, having turned her attention towards her fallen partner, saw this with wide eyes as Brainiac lifted Yang off the ground, his fist clenched around her throat as he began to squeeze. The action roused Yang from unconsciousness, and with wide, terrified eyes began to choke and gasp for air, trying in vain to pry the hand from her throat.

"Yang!" Ruby screamed as she raced towards Brainiac, knocking herself into his arm and dislodging her sister while hitting him in the face with the blunt end of her scythe. With a quick burst of petals, she carried her gasping sister to safety, depositing her next to the others while she went back to face him head on. She raced towards the alien, turning into petals as she danced around him. She would reform to deliver a slice before bursting away as he tried to counter attack, reforming again to attack once more and repeating the process ad nauseum for several moments. Deep scratches finally began to appear on Brainiac's armor, having been worn down from the fighting, but it wasn't enough. With each use of her Semblance, Brainiac's attacks were getting closer and closer, and she herself was getting slower. Finally, as Ruby attempted another swing, Brainiac caught her weapon and held it in place, extending his tentacles around her arm. She tried to rip her arm free, but found that she couldn't. Immobilized, she couldn't stop Brainiac from delivering a powerful sideways kick to her side. She gasped as the blow ripped her from the tentacles hold and threw her to the side, causing her to roll on the ground before stopping at the feet of her friends, all lying on the ground. Shakily, Ruby propped herself up with Crescent Rose and stared defiantly at the slowly advancing alien, one of her eyes swollen shut while her lip was split.

"I… I…" she stammered before collapsing onto her knees. Brainiac continued to walk towards her, and with one final act of defiance she shifted Crescent Rose into a rifle and fired, hitting him in the head. The shot did nothing. When Brainiac calmly approached the kneeling girl, he violently brought his fist down on her head, shattering the remains of her Aura and knocking her to the ground. Her vision blurred and she almost passed out, but with tremendous effort was able to keep her from doing so.

"No…" Ruby grasped the pain as she attempted once more to push off the ground, tears threatening to pour out of her.

"As I said," Brainiac repeated before casually placing his foot on her head, pushing her to the ground and making her whimper, "a futile effort."

At that, he walked away back to his console. With a great amount of strain, Ruby forced herself to look at him as the cables reattached themselves to his body. The glass screen in front of him sprung to life and showed the city of Vale, and at once Ruby's eye widened.

"No…" she whimpered as Brainiac's ship fired upon Vale, engulfing it in a wave of light, which blinded her and roused the others from their unconscious states. As they took in the sight of the light, it died down to only reveal a crater where Vale once rested.

"Planet R2003T's preservation is now complete," Brainiac announced as he took it in. A ghost of a smile flashed across his face, only to disappear as soon as it arrived.

"You…heartless monster…" Ruby grunted out as she forced herself onto her knees. Brainiac ignored her as a holographic display appeared above him. A sinking feeling formed in Ruby's gut, but before she could call out, he pressed a button.

At once, a thin green beam shot down towards the planet, striking in the heart of what was once Vale. The beam burrowed its way deep into Remnant's crust and passed into the mantle. Not ceasing, it continued forward into the outer core before finally striking the inner core. Once there, the beam coalesced into an orb before exploding. The force destabilized the core, shattering it and causing a spontaneous collapse, which quickly spread across the entire planet. Fire erupted from large cracks along the crust, vaporizing the oceans in an instant as the atmosphere disintegrated. Large columns of fire and magma shot out like geysers, and what was once a world teeming with life was now a molten ball of fire. Even that did not last long, as one final crack appeared, one too many for the planet to handle. In an instant, the planet exploded, the shockwave buffeting Brainiac's ship and knocking the metal box closer to Ruby, who did not notice as it impacted her thigh. Neither did the others as they stared in silent horror at what was once their world, now floating chunks of smoldering rock.

"Y…you…." The words barely came out of Ruby's dry mouth. Her heartbeat thundered within her, and she didn't know what to do. "W…wh…why…?"

"I had no need of it to gather the knowledge needed," Brainiac explained as if it was obvious. "Remnant's cities will be preserved until such a time as I have gathered all the information I can from them. Then, I will dispose of them to allow for their capsules to be used for other cities."

"You…you monster, you…" Jaune gasped out in accusation, unable to finish his sentence. "How is…that preservation?"

"They do not need to be alive for them to be preserved," Brainiac calmly stated, his back still turned to them. "Only their collected knowledge. That is far more important than any lives lost."

"No…" Blake whimpered.

"Your feelings on this matter are inconsequential," Brainiac declared as he removed the tubing from his body. He turned back towards the students, prepared to recapture them for study, when he finally noticed the box beside them.

"The Mother Box…" he eyes actually widened as the metal box began to violently shake and glow. Everyone's attention was directed towards it as it recoiled away and began to pulsate wildly. The centers of each square moved and pulsed, segments flying out then back in like water, revealing a white glow beneath it. He sprinted towards them, tentacles reaching and his arm outstretched towards the shaking box, only for it to explode into light. At once, a column of light erupted around the fallen students. They screamed in fright as the Boom Tube pulsated around them and dragged them upwards towards it. As they passed, the ship began to shake violently from the force exerted, holes and tears appearing everywhere, above and below the bridge. From the shaking force, Brainiac's engines cut off, causing the ship to cease moving. Finally, as Ruby, now clutching the Mother Box like a lifeline, entered the Boom Tube, it collapsed in on itself, sending a shockwave that rocked the ship and its contents, knocking Brainiac to the ground and sending sparks flying everywhere. Explosions rocked the ship for a few moments and then ceased. Only then did Brainiac rise to his feet. With precise steps, he walked over to the location of the Boom Tube's creation, a large Omega sign now burned onto the ground.

"How did I not see this?" he muttered to himself as he ran over the battle in his head. Quickly an answer revealed itself, and Brainiac shook his head in frustration. He had been so focused on the battle, he had let the small device escape his view, despite the fact that the white-haired female walked in with it. He momentarily cursed himself for the lapse in judgement before moving on. Right now, the priority was fixing his ship. With the debris field around him, it would not be hard to gather the needed materials. Then, he would find out just where the Boom Tube had taken them. Once he did, he would find them again.

It did not matter where they went or who opposed him.

* * *

 

In a solar system far from Remnant's own, on the third planet in a system of eight, on one of the seven continents of the lush and fertile world, a man and a woman sat in a diner. They had known each other for years, been coworkers at the same newspaper. At first, they were just close friends, but that, over time, blossomed into something more.

"You were right," the brunette woman said as she drank her milkshake, "these are really good."

"What did I tell you?" The man smiled, his eyes mirthful as he looked through his glasses. "So thick you need a spoon."

"How'd you come across this place, anyway?"

"I saw it one day while I was with Bruce," the man revealed. "I saw it out of the corner of my eye and figured 'Why not?'. Been in love with the place ever since."

"I see," the woman nodded with a knowing smile. "Tell me, did Bruce join you?"

"You know how he is." He shrugged. "Diana liked it, though."

"Hah, I bet she did. She loves everything about Metropolis. Something tells me that if she had her way, Bruce would have been dragged along."

"Probably!" The man laughed along with the woman. Slowly, the laughter died down and they continued to eat their milkshakes and burgers in silence.

"Clark," the woman softly spoke, "I've…been meaning to ask you something…"

"What is it, Lois?" Clark asked in concern. Lois looked at him, a question she had been wanting to ask for years on her lips, but she sighed and shook her head.

"It's nothing, never mind. Let's just—" Lois was interrupted by a loud explosion that rang across the Metropolis air, attracting everyone's attention. Cars stopped on the street as people looked up into the sky, trying to find the source of the boom. Soon, it was followed by screams as people began to run. With a start, Clark and Lois left money on the table as they left the diner, Lois pulling out a pen and notepad as she did. Quickly, they saw a telltale phenomenon beginning to open over Metropolis, and Lois pursed her lips.

"A Boom Tube," she muttered as she quickly began jotting down on her notepad and pulled out her phone. "Jimmy, get over here! Boom Tube on corner of Fifth and West!"

" _On my way, Lois!_ " Jimmy Olsen quickly replied before hanging up.

"Alright, Smallville! Come on, lets…" Lois Lane turned around to look for her junior, only to sigh as she noticed he was already absent. "Of course he's gone."

As the people around him continued to run, Clark Kent ran into a nearby alley. He tossed his glasses aside and continued to run, the people behind him not noticing as he ripped off his buttoned shirt, revealing a blue garment with a gold diamond in the center of his chest, a red S emblazoned on it. No one witnessed with Clark Kent shedding the rest of his clothes, revealing his blue and red outfit underneath, a red cape behind him.

Everyone cheered when Superman flew in and stopped in front of the Boom Tube, ready to face whatever came out.

[~][~]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, everyone, and welcome to Hunters of Justice, a RWBY/DC Comics crossover I've been working on with NaanContributor and Jesse K for the past several months. We started the story over on Forums.Spacebattles.com and later ported it to Fanfiction.Net, and now that I have an AO3 account, we figured it was time to port it to here as well.
> 
> We started out story from a simple desire to see a RWBY crossover with the broad DC Universe that was not the typical and overdone 'DC comes to Remnant' plotline so many have done. RWBY and JNPR going to DC Earth was, to us, far more interesting. If you love DC, superheroes, drama, action, and more, this story will have a lot for you.
> 
> I will be updating this story daily until it catches up with my FF.net version, at which point I will update all three at once. Please let us know your thoughts below. I try to respond to each and every one of them, so long as they aren't spoilers.
> 
> We hope you guys enjoy!


	2. The Justice League

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Justice League respond to a crisis in Metropolis as eight battered children arrive, bringing with them a threat unlike they had ever seen before, as well as promises of things yet to come.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 2: The Justice League **

* * *

She was falling. The world around her was pure white light. No noise, no pain, no feeling. Ruby was just falling through the white void, struggling to stay awake, but everything just felt so…peaceful. Serene might be the better word for it.

Her vision began to blur as simply staying awake became a monumental struggle. Out of the corner of her eyes, she could see dark human-shaped blurs falling above her. She couldn’t identify who was who, but she knew that they were her friends. That comforted her, somewhat, as that meant that they were still together.

Brainiac had taken everything else.

Her consciousness was fading now, but as she did, the white light that surrounded her grew even brighter, almost blinding. It soon disappeared, and the silence she was just beginning to grow accustomed to was replaced by sirens, horns, and other sounds straight out of a bustling city. Ruby could see blurry outlines of tall buildings shooting past her as she fell, and from the height of those buildings, Ruby could guess that she was very high up. Even if she had Aura, a fall from how high she thought she was would almost certainly be fatal. Yet, she somehow couldn’t bring herself to care.

The last thing she felt before losing consciousness was soft yet strong arms gently catching her. She looked to see a man looking down on her in concern. Then, everything went black.

* * *

_Five Minutes Earlier_

“Lois, this is nuts!” Jimmy Olsen half-whispered, half-yelled to Lois as they continued to watch the Boom Tube pulse. By now, half of the Metropolis Police Department was getting into position around the portal, along with the US Army. After Darkseid, the White Martians, and the Thanarganians, they weren’t taking any chances. Snipers were poking their rifles out of the nearby office buildings on nearly every floor, ready to pick off anything that might come out. A few tanks were lining up on the street, backed by missile trucks and a small army of uniformed police officers, SWAT, and soldiers. Sandbags were already being emplaced and fortified with rocket launchers and heavy machine guns. Apache gunships were hovering overhead, their weapons locked and ready to fire. Occasionally, a flight of A-10s could be seen flying overhead.

Yet, all of that paled to the man wearing red and blue spandex floating in front of all of them.

“Camera on the action, Jimmy,” Lois immediately replied, her eyes never leaving the developing story in front of them. Already she was noting down every detail for the Daily Planet article she was going to write about this. The number of soldiers, police officers, tanks and everything in between. Still, she would be lying to herself if she said she wasn’t at all nervous. Truth was, she was terrified. Boom Tubes were never a good sign, not by themselves but from what usually came out of them.

But, every time her gaze turned over to Superman, that fear lifted and was replaced with hope. He had that effect on people, her in particular. Whether he was wearing tights or a pair of glasses. If only he would simply _tell_ her what she had already figured out.

“Lois, you’re frowning again,” Jimmy cut into her brooding. Shaking her head, Lois cleared her thoughts and focused on the action, pointedly ignoring the smirk Jimmy was giving her as he continued to take photos of everything in sight.

“J’onn, talk to me. What does the Watchtower say about the Boom Tube? Anything about what’s coming through it?” Superman called out into his radio earpiece.

“ _Unknown_ ,” the ever-calm voice of J’onn J’onzz, the Martian Manhunter, replied over the radio. “ _All we can determine is that the Boom Tube’s end point is not from Apokolips or any presently known location, and that the number of lifeforms inside is too small to get an accurate read for an estimate. A small group at most._ ”

“Which means someone must have found a Mother Box and activated it, bringing them here. But why?” Superman mused, his eyes never leaving the growing pulsations high above the Metropolis skyline. Even after nearly half an hour of no signs of anything coming out, he was on guard and ready for whatever emerged.

“ _Flash, Batman, and Wonder Woman are already on their way and will be there soon, as are Hawkgirl and Green Lantern. I’ll be down there momentarily as well._ ”

“ _Negative, J’onn. We need you up there in mission control_ ,” the gravelly voice of Batman cut into the radio. Almost as soon as he did, a sleek black jet flew in from above and a black form ejected from it. Superman immediately recognized Batman’s experienced dive and made no move to intercept. That decision turned to be accurate as Batman unfolded his cape and slowed his freefall into a graceful glide, landing next to Superman.

“And I’m already here,” he finished speaking. If he didn’t know any better, Superman would almost think Batman was amused in saying that, but this was Batman they were talking about.

“ _Aw, Bats beat me?_ ” Barry Allen, the Flash, whined through the radio. “ _No fair! I got caught up stopping Boomerang and Captain Cold trying to rob the Central City Bank and Mirror Master trying to kill me. Again._ ”

“How soon can you get here?” Batman ignored the whining, earning an amused chuckle from the Kryptonian.

“ _Be there in about five minutes. I’d be there sooner, but there was a wreck on I-76. Gotta drop them off at a hospital first._ ”

“Keep us posted. Superman out.” Clicking the radio off, Superman momentarily took his eyes off the Boom Tube to look at Batman, whose expression remained grim as he studied the phenomenon intensely. “So, any thoughts?”

“It’s not Apokolips,” Batman immediately replied, “otherwise we’d already have an army of Parademons coming through. Given how long the Boom Tube’s been open, its likely that either the Boom Tube wasn’t opened properly, or the distance is extremely far from Earth, possibly both.”

“Agreed. Would explain why it’s still forming.” Superman turned his attention back to the Boom Tube. It’s pulsing was growing faster by the second. That could only mean that whatever was inside would be through momentarily. “Who would have a Mother Box, though?”

“That’s a question we’ll have to ask whoever used it,” Batman replied. Suddenly, the pulsations stopped as the Boom Tube fully materialized, a white circle hovering over the city. At once the sounds of safeties being flipped off and rockets moving into position sounded off around them. Batman tensed, his hand reaching for a batarang, but Superman stayed calm. He focused on the Boom Tube, trying to see whatever was coming through. He could faintly see some dark shapes coming through it.

“Rao,” Superman muttered as the first shape fell through the portal. It wasn’t a parademon, a robot, or some other alien menace.

It was a child. A broken, unconscious child falling through the air like a lead brick.

Without a second thought, Superman flew through the air as fast as he could towards the falling child. He could see it was a young girl, at most sixteen years of age, wearing a tattered skirt with leggings. Her hair was the darkest red he had ever laid his eyes on, appearing almost black before showing its true color at the tips. Clutched to her side was a dark metallic Mother Box, answering the question as to how she got here. His attention, however, was no longer on the Mother Box. Dark bruises marred her otherwise pale skin, some of which became painfully obvious as he gently caught her. For a moment, she looked at him as if she were surprised that she didn’t die, revealing her silver eyes to him before finally falling unconscious.

“ _Get her down here, now!_ ” Batman ordered, already directing medics to receive the girl. Just as Superman turned to gently fly down, seven more bodies fell out of the Boom Tube. Two boys and five girls. This time, they were accompanied by a rain of black globs and a large tube of a tar-like substance, along with several battered weapons, but Superman paid them no heed. He was already on the nearest child, a blond boy wearing shattered white armor over a rabbit-marked hoodie, then turned into a blur to catch the rest of the falling children. Like the silver-eyed girl, they too were unconscious and heavily injured. One girl’s arm was completely shattered.

“Who did this to you?” he asked, mostly to himself as he gently carried the eight children to the street. A stretcher was already waiting for him, with seven more being rolled out by Army medics. As his feet touched the ground, he turned into a blur once more to gently lay the children on the stretchers and watched as they were carried off to a nearby medical tent.

“They were only children,” Superman breathed out, continuing to watch them being carried away. “What happened to them?”

“Whoever did this…” Batman clenched his fist in anger.

“ _Wait, hold up. What’s this about children?_ ” Flash called out over the radio, his voice sounding concerned.

“Eight teenagers, mostly women, fell out of the Boom Tube,” Batman immediately responded. “All were beaten and unconscious. Wounds and bruising indicate blunt force trauma.”

“ _Someone beat up children!?’_ ” Flash was angry now. “ _What the hell?! I’m almost there!_ ”

“Hurry,” Batman replied as he turned back towards where the Boom Tube was just a moment ago. It was gone now, telling him that nothing else was coming through. For a moment, he allowed himself to think it might be over, only for him to remember the tar that fell through earlier. To his alarm, the substance was leaking out of the large tube, and the droplets from before were beginning to accumulate into a large pool. The army had begun to take notice and aimed their weapons at the black mass, a few nervously swaying as the pool began to bubble and churn.

“I’m beginning to think that wasn’t tar,” Superman announced as he floated next to Batman. His vision cycled through every wavelength, trying to see what it was. All he saw was a dark void. “What in the world…?”

Before Batman could ask what he saw, the pool began to move. A large body slowly rose out of the pool, black tar dripping off of its form to reveal a black mass of fur underneath. More tar fell away to reveal bone-white protrusions lining its body, including a skull-like mask over its snout. It looked vaguely like a wolf, if that wolf walked on two legs and looked like it used them to escape Hell. Hundreds of red dots marked the wolf-like creature, only for more to come out of the pool beside it, splitting everyone’s attention. Other shapes then appeared, only these looked like large bears or a strange dinosaur-like creature that was mostly jaws.

The first wolf shifted its gaze around lazily as everyone tried to determine what to do. Several were beginning to grow fearful, which only increased once the creatures turned their attention towards them. Then, at once, they all roared and began to charge.

“Open fire!” At once, a rain of fire descended onto the black horde. A series of large explosions, both from missiles and tank shells, annihilated many, bullets carving through their thin hides like hot knives through butter. Yet, as a single creature went down, five more rose out of the pit to take its place. The army continued to cut them down, but as more rose up they began to notice how more armored creatures started appearing. These were more durable, bullets and missiles not affecting them as much but they still fell against the onslaught. Still, they began to charge towards the army, ignoring their fallen brethren as they snarled. Bullets and missiles tore into the creatures, several of them slain, but the rest continued their advance. As one neared a terrified Metropolis police officer, a red and blue blur slammed into the black wolf into a nearby building. The force cracked the concrete, forming a small crater as Superman held the creature in place, its jaws and forelimbs struggling to free itself yet doing nothing to the Kryptonian. Taking in a deep breath, Superman blew freezing air out of his pursed lips at the creature, forming crystals of ice that froze the beast solid. He couldn’t rest, however, as screams rang out behind him. Turning around, Superman saw more creatures descending onto the army, their weapons proving mostly useless as the soldiers fired desperately into the swarming mass. At once, red beams of intense heat shot out of Superman’s eyes, burning holes into the creatures and carving many into smoking husks.

“Captain, move your men back, now! Focus on keeping them contained!” Superman ordered as he blurred between several different creatures at once, delivering powerful punches to each one in his path. The supersonic blows created loud booms that shattered glass along with creating small divots in the road beneath him. Idly, he noted a few stray shots bouncing off of his skin, but he paid them no heed. They weren’t hurting him, after all. He could hear the sounds of the soldiers falling back, several of them continuing to fire and covering their retreat. A few creatures made to go after them, but Superman quickly moved towards the attackers and destroyed them.

“What are these things?!” Superman yelled as he killed another creature. Thick black smoke was beginning to fill the air, and with wide eyes he realized they were being emitted from the creatures’ corpses. “They’re disintegrating!”

“I know!” Batman shouted as he dived away from one of the large bear-like creatures, its powerful claws breaking a concrete pillar in half. As he did, he threw a trio of batarangs towards it, only to note that the devices merely sank into the fur to no effect.

“Hmmph,” he growled as he rolled to his feet. Again, the creature leapt towards him, forcing Batman to pull out his grappling gun and zip to a nearby balcony. Given how the massive creature created a large crater where he once stood, he was glad he did. To his side, one of the wolves reared up and leapt ten feet into the air, landing on the balcony with him. Taking a defensive posture, Batman ducked and weaved around the wolf’s wild swings, occasionally throwing a few punches and kicks for good measure. Like the batarangs from before, they did nothing, and as the wolf swung its arms in downward swings, Batman backflipped away and spring boarded off his hands. As he flew through the air, he threw another trio of batarangs at the creature, only this time when they sank into fur, a red dot began rapidly blinking on each of them before violently exploding in a ball of concussive fire. That had an effect on the creature, disorienting it enough for the crimefighter to rain rapid punches on its skull. The earlier resistance came back and forced Batman to kick away from the wolf, leaving behind a spray of foam on its chest. Idly, the creature noted it and poked the substance with one of its claws, almost as if in curiosity. This was all the distraction Batman needed as he detonated the explosive foam, the force destroying the chest cavity and throwing the wolf off the balcony. Black smoke emitted from the street below, telling Batman it was dead.

Without pause, Batman grappled over to another balcony on the other side of the street, one that offered a higher vantage point on the chaos below. Superman was still handling most of the creatures on the ground, none of them standing a chance against the infinitely strong alien, but several kept attempting to attack the retreating army, forcing him to break off and kill the stragglers. This meant that the pool wasn’t being taken care of, despite the fact that the gunships were firing everything they had into it.

More creatures were rising out of the pool, a few in particular looking like large birds. Many were immediately filled with holes and began disintegrating, but a few managed to surviving the onslaught. Then, as the birds spread their wings and cawed, they took off into the air and shot large feathers at the helicopters firing at them. The Apaches attempted to dodge, but it was too late. The large feathers pierced the armor and glass cockpits, showering the insides with red sprays as the gunships spun out of control and crashed onto the ground. Most of them exploded on contact, but one didn’t and merely skidded across the ground. Through the shattered glass, Batman saw the copilot struggling to free herself as several of the creatures swarmed her, only for explosive batarangs to be thrown at the horde, detonating on impact. Now disoriented, Batman exploited the opening and grappled over to the downed helicopter, shattered the glass with a well-aimed punch, and pulled the pilot out of her seat. Just as the creatures began to reorient themselves, Batman clasped the pilot close to his side and grappled the two of them to safety, dropping her off next to one of the snipers in a nearby building.

“Thank you, Batman!” she cried out as one of the spotters began tending to her. With a silent nod, Batman went back out to another vantage point, and with a grimace he watched as creatures continued to appear from the pool.

“We need to destroy that pool!” Batman yelled over the radio as surface-to-air missiles shot down the avian creatures, only for more birds to appear and fire feathers at the launchers, destroying them. He pressed a few buttons on his gauntlet before diving away from a number of feathers being fired towards him. As he fell, he grappled to another ledge away from the leaping jaws, dropping down freeze grenades as he did. Filled with the same compound used in Victor Fries’ freeze gun, the creatures became sealed in blocks of ice, but a few quickly began cracking as the creatures struggled to free themselves.

“Working on it!” Superman shouted as he flew up to one of the birds at supersonic speeds. The force of the impact crumpled the large avian, the ensuing shockwave shattering many glass panels. He then blew hurricane-force winds at another bird, sending it crashing into the ground and crushing many creatures under its massive body. While it struggled to get up, two beams of heat burned into its skull, boiling the brain and killing it instantly. Like the others, its body began to turn into smoke. The two remaining birds cried out and turned away.

“They’re getting away!” Superman yelled out as he prepared to fly after them.

“No, stay here! I’ll take care of them!” Batman countered as the Batwing flew back in, firing machine guns and missiles into the horde below. It paused to hover overhead, allowing Batman to grapple into the underside. He pushed another button on his gauntlet, and the underside of the plane opened and descended, allowing him to climb inside and strap himself to the pilot seat. With another roar of the engines, the Batwing flew off after the large birds.

“Be careful!” Superman called out over the radio as the Batwing disappeared behind a building while he flew back down to the street below. His landing created a powerful shockwave, lifting the ground beneath him and launching several of the creatures into the air with broken, mangled bodies. By now almost all of their attention was on him, completely ignoring the fire from the army, now a respectable distance away. A few times tank shells and missiles exploded across the horde, but they paid them no heed as they focused entirely on Superman. He could only guess that they recognized him as the bigger threat.

They were right, but that didn’t mean they could do anything about it as Superman grabbed one of the dinosaur-like creatures and ripped it in half. He threw one smoking chunk at a large bear and another at one of the wolves, only for a spikier bear to crash into him. It raised its arms and swung downward, only for the claws to shatter against his body. Smirking, Superman delivered a supersonic headbutt onto the creature, shattering its skull and causing it to fall backwards. Black smoke wisped off of it as Superman prepared to attack another one, only for a red blur to zoom through several at once.

“Sorry I’m late,” Flash smiled as he vibrated in place. A nearby wolf moved to attack him, only for Flash to turn into a blur as he punched it into a heaping black mass. As it keeled over, it began to turn into smoke and the other creatures paused and looked at the two warily. “What are these things?”

“No idea, but they aren’t alive,” Superman revealed as the creatures stirred among themselves. “They keep coming out of that nearby pool, but I can’t get to it and risk the creatures going after anyone.”

“Well then, we need to buy you that opening,” Flash stated as he faced the creatures. At once, the horde charged them yet again, only this time a few of them ran off in separate directions.

“I got ‘em!” Flash yelled as he ran after the creatures. The world slowed as the fastest man alive ran through the horde, delivering punches to each creature he passed. The force shattered whatever part of the body he struck, whether it be arm, chest, or head until he finally arrived at his targets. He grabbed one and threw it into another, the bony spikes impaling the thrown creature while he shattered the skull of the other. By now, the other creatures were slowly beginning to realize what was happening, but their attempts to counter were like moving through molasses to the Flash. In an instant, he delivered a hurricane of punches and jabs to one of the creatures’ chest, shattering its ribs and what he could only assume to be its internal organs. Black blood dripped from its jaws as it slowly began to keel over, and Flash moved onto another target to deliver a supersonic spin kick. The kick decapitated the wolf, rocketing its head into the chest of one of the bears, caving it in and causing half of it to explode. The last one had begun to swing its claws at where Flash was just a few seconds ago, and with a smirk he vibrated his arms and stabbed it through its back then pulled out a dark red and still beating heart.

“Ew, ew!” he whined as he threw the heart away. The world suddenly turned to normal as the group he had dealt with began to turn into smoke. Another creature attempted to swipe at him, only for its head to explode from the concentrated fire of several snipers.

“Thanks, guys!” Flash gave a thumbs up before running back into the horde. He could see Superman was continuing to draw the creatures’ attention, and as he raced to help his comrade, he stopped as a large glob began to emerge from the pool. It dwarfed all the others and drew Superman’s attention as the tar began to fall away, revealing white tusks and a large hairless body.

“It’s…an elephant…” Flash numbly noted before being struck by one of the bears. He hurtled through the air and struck a metal trash can, caving it in while breaking his impromptu flight. As the bear advanced, a green rocket struck the bear and disintegrated it. More green lights appeared, taking the shape of several different weapons, including swords and axes, which began to carve the horde apart.

“Thanks, GL,” Flash noted as he rose to his feet, “but I had it handled.”

“Dammit, Flash, take this seriously!” John Stewart, a Green Lantern, chastised Flash as he created a green minigun and began firing it into the horde. At the same time,  Hawkgirl flew in from above and, using her nth metal mace, descended onto the creatures and began swinging.

“Huagh!” she yelled as she crushed the skull of a bear under her swing. “They just keep coming!” Another wolf attempted to attack her from behind, only for her to extend out one of her wings and strike it back. Green Lantern prepared to fire upon it, only for an armored woman to fall out of the sky and crush it underfoot.

“Diana,” Green Lantern greeted the Wonder Woman, who smiled warmly even as more of the black creatures descended upon her. She unsheathed her sword and began to cleave her way through them, using her shield to block a downward swipe from a bear. The force buckled the ground beneath her, but rather than seem worried, she seemed amused. She swiped upward, cleaving the bear in half from hip to shoulder, and as the smoking body fell away, she leapt back from more of the creatures.

“What are these things?” she asked as another attacked her. She kicked it away, her Amazonian strength caving in the chest while hitting yet another creature’s neck with her shield, breaking it with a loud crack.

“Was kind of hoping you knew!” Green Lantern shouted as he grabbed hold of several of the creatures in a green stasis field. They struggled to break free, only for the former marine to crush them inside the sphere. He then threw the shattered remains at the largest elephant he had ever seen, which was currently wrestling with Superman.

“We need to keep them contained! Flash, maintain the perimeter!” Diana ordered as she unfurled her lasso and hurled the loop towards one of the wolves. She then twisted it around her leg while blocking another claw with her shield and stabbing a wolf through the underside of the jaw then pulled her leg back. The lassoed creature swung through the air, knocking over anything in its path, whether it be cars, concrete pillars, or one of its own. As it skidded to the ground, she pulled the lasso towards her and then met the wolf with the tip of her sword, stabbing it through the open maw. It stirred slightly before going still.

“It’s like they have no minds of their own,” Diana observed as she chopped off a dinosaur-like creature’s head. “They should have retreated by now!”

“I noticed!” Superman grunted as he continued to wrestle with the elephant.

Suddenly, a massive scorpion-like creature emerged from the pool and crashed into Superman, knocking him through a wall. The two giants then turned towards the still firing army and began to charge. Wonder Woman lassoed one of the elephant’s tusks and attempted to hold it in place, but it merely turned its head and swung her into a nearby building then continued its charge. By now the entirety of the army’s firepower was focused on the charging creatures. Bullets burrowed into them while rockets exploded across the thick hide and bony armor, but they still continued their stampede. Green Lantern attempted to erect green brick walls to stop the charge, but the elephant and scorpion merely broke through them. Then the tanks began firing both the gunner’s machine gun and the main cannons at them, the blasts staggering them. Yet, they continued to advance, forcing the tanks to back up while firing. The scorpion finally went down and began to smoke, while the elephant made it to the nearest tank and crushed it underfoot. Soldiers began to scream and fire wildly at the creature, but their weapons didn’t faze it as it stabbed another tank with its tusks then hurled it towards a group of soldiers. With a final scream, they ducked down and covered their heads in a futile attempt at shielding themselves, only for the crushing weight to never come. Looking up, they saw Superman holding the wrecked tank in place while firing his heat vision at the elephant, halting its advance and throwing it to the ground.

“Don’t worry, I got this handled,” he said as he gently laid the tank on the ground. Flying to the top of the turret, he pried open the tank and gently helped the shaken survivors out. He then grabbed hold of the barrel and, like a baseball bat, swung the tank into the side of the creature’s head, caving part of it in and breaking one of the tusks in half. Dazed, the creature attempted to fight on, only for Superman to grab hold of it and wrestle it to the ground. It continued to struggle, even as Superman threw powerful punches at the creature, each blow creating a shockwave and crushing part of its skull. Finally, he grabbed the remaining tusk, ripped it off, and stabbed the elephant through the eye, killing it instantly.

The soldiers watched amazed as Superman flew back into the fray, with a few of them beginning to cheer, even as they continued to fire at any creature that attempted to flee. They heard a roar of jets overhead as the Batwing returned, flanked by two A-10s, chasing the final bird before firing upon it with their machine guns. The high caliber rounds tore into the avian, sending it plummeting into the horde below which was joined by the A-10s strafing run, eliminating most of the remaining creatures. It was then that an underside compartment opened underneath the Batwing, revealing a single bomb that dropped towards the pool. It exploded on contact, releasing a cloud of freezing gas that froze everything it touched completely solid, including the pool.

“What was that?” Flash asked, returning from taking out a few stragglers while Batman ejected from the Batwing.

“Fermionic gas, supercooled to a few degrees above absolute zero,” Batman revealed as he glided to a stop. “Had to freeze the Gotham River once, long story.”

“I would very much like to hear that story.”

“No.”

“Aw, man.”

“What if I want to hear the story?” Diana gently asked as she walked over to them, an amused smile on her face. Batman said nothing as he walked over to the frozen tar pool. Taking out a small hammer from his utility belt, he broke up a frozen chunk and held it to his face, closely examining it.

“Hmm, no traces of any organic material,” he noted as his cowl scanned the substance in front of him. He then turned to the Flash and tossed him the frozen piece, who clumsily bounced it between his hands before finally catching it.

“We need more samples of this. Find out exactly what these things are,” Batman revealed as he continued to take samples. “We can use the equipment on the Watchtower to better analyze the substance.”

“I’m on it,” Flash nodded before turning into a blur. He began taking more and more samples off of the frozen pool as well as a few off of the creatures themselves. Those he ended up discarding immediately as they simply turned to dust in his hand.

“That’s weird,” Flash noted as he continued to collect samples. Finally, when he had gathered an armful of samples, he returned to Batman as he motioned to Superman, who was hovering overhead.

“You all set?” the Kryptonian asked, to which Batman silently nodded. He nodded back then stared at the pool. His eyes burned red before twin beams of heat shot out from them, striking the center of the frozen pool. The ice turned red and boiled hot, and the black tar underneath began to burn away as did the frozen corpses. After a few minutes of concentration, he stopped, and nothing was left.

* * *

At once, cheers echoed around them as police, soldiers, and citizens of both Metropolis and the world celebrated their heroes’ victory. All except for one, who watched with contempt down from his tower.

“So they won again,” the bald man muttered, his arms crossed behind his back. As soon as the Boom Tube opened, he had retreated to his tower. No doubt existed in his mind that, with the alien already present, whatever came through would be repulsed. That wasn’t to say that he didn’t hope that the alien would fall, but he had to acknowledge the inevitable. Very few beings could hope to stand against the Man of Steel and hope to emerge victorious.

He was one of them.

“Mr. Luthor,” an Asian woman announced as she walked into the penthouse, wearing a dark brown suit and holding a clipboard in her hand. “We were able to contain one of the creatures and a few samples of the tar-like substance. The tar is being transported back to one of LexCorp’s offshore labs, but the creature…committed suicide and disintegrated upon being contained.”

“Is that so?” Lex Luthor asked as he continued to watch the so-called heroes below. The woman nodded, and Lex shook his head. “Unfortunate, but at least it wasn’t a total loss. How many of the mercenaries survived?”

“Out of twenty, five were killed and ten were crippled.”

“Tragic,” Lex’s voice was insincere, “Ensure they can’t be traced back to LexCorp.”

“I already sent in the order,” she responded with a smirk. “As far as the world is concerned, twenty police officers heroically lost their lives trying to bring the creatures down.”

“Schedule a press conference to commemorate their loss and their families, along with the other lives lost today,” Lex said as he turned to face the woman. “Oh, and Mercy? Find out everything you can about the aliens that came through before the creatures.”

“Of course, sir.”

* * *

“They’re all so young,” Diana muttered as she watched over the unconscious teenagers. IV’s connected them to saline bags while monitors displayed their heartbeats and blood pressures. Medics tended to them, already applying a cast to a red-haired girl wearing armor that looked like it came straight out of ancient Greece. If Diana didn’t know any better, she’d think the girl was an Amazon like her.

“Do you think the creatures did this?” Superman asked as he looked into their bodies with his x-ray vision. “They have some bruising and broken bones, but luckily no internal bleeding or ruptures.”

“No, none of their wounds indicate an animal attack,” Batman observed. “We’d see bite marks, gashes, or similar wounds. All we have are bruises and broken bones.”

“And burns. A lot of burns,” Green Lantern noted. “From what I can see, plasma bolts. Low intensity, but that’s usually combined with a lot of ‘em.”

“You mean someone was shooting at them, too?” Flash asked with wide-eyes. “Darkseid?”

“If it was Darkseid, they’d be dead already,” Superman grimly pointed out. “No, this was someone else.”

“Someone who had a Mother Box,” Hawkgirl pointed out and shook her head. “This entire thing is just turning into one big mess. What are we going to do?”

“We take them to the Watchtower,” Batman noted, drawing everyone’s attention.

“You can’t be serious,” Diana protested.

“I am.” The others moved to protest further, but Batman silenced them by holding up his hand. “Just in case you haven’t fully realized, they had a Mother Box with them. One of the most powerful supercomputers in the universe, capable of things we can barely comprehend, and they had one. That can only mean trouble, and the Justice League is the most equipped to handle it.”

“Are you saying they’re a threat?” Green Lantern accused, to which Batman merely stared him down.

“No. They aren’t a threat. Whatever did this,” he pointed to them in emphasis, “is. We don’t know where they came from or who had the Mother Box before they got it. I can only assume that its previous owner is responsible for their injuries.”

“And it’s highly likely that they’ll come here, next,” Superman finished Batman’s thought.

“Yes.” Batman nodded. “There’s another reason why we need to take them to the Watchtower.”

“Waller and Luthor,” Diana realized with a grimace.

“Exactly. Eight unconscious aliens just fell out of the sky and were followed by hostile creatures, the likes of which we had never seen before. They and others like them are going to want to know _exactly_ what they are.”

“No matter what happens to them,” Superman nodded. “I’m with Batman. We take them up to the Watchtower.”

“When you put it like that, so am I,” Flash agreed. Diana and the others nodded as well.

“I’ll go talk to General Swanwick, get him to release them into our custody. J’onn, prepare the teleporter,” Superman spoke into the radio.

“ _Already prepped and ready. Green Arrow and Black Canary are on standby to take them to the medical bay,_ ” J’onn’s voice rang out.

“Thanks. Oh, and Lois,” Superman suddenly turned around to face the entrance to the tent. At first, no one was there, only for a young brunette to step out, followed by a young man with freckles and red hair. “If you could make sure no pictures of them make it into the Daily Planet tomorrow…?”

“Don’t worry, Superman,” Lois smiled and shook her head. “But, I will expect an interview later.”

“Always itching for that story, aren’t you?” Superman smiled. “I’ll be sure to let you know.”

“Of course.” Lois nodded. With a nod of his own to both the reporter and his fellow superheroes, Superman walked out of the tent and straight to General Swanwick. A tall, dark man, it wasn’t hard to spot him next to Colonel Hardy and Major Farris.

“Superman,” the general nodded to him. “I imagine this isn’t a simple hello. What is it you need?”

* * *

Orbiting above the Earth, inside the largest space station in human history, a man and a woman watched several tv monitors at the same time. All of them were tuned to different news stations from different countries around the world, from the United States to China. All were reporting the same thing.

_Attack in Metropolis: Precursor to Invasion?_

_Justice League Defends Metropolis from Alien Creatures._

_Battle in Metropolis between Justice League and Alien Creatures Creates Devastation and Chaos._

It was easy to see which news outlets were favorable to their actions and which ones were not.

“It never ends, does it?” the woman asked. She was wearing a black-and-yellow leather suit and pants, with the pants cut along the side to reveal the fishnets and white skin underneath. Her shoulder length blonde hair draped behind her, and the man beside her couldn’t help but stare. He was wearing a green ranger outfit, slightly armored while wearing a green cap. His combed blond hair was completed by an equally blond beard, carefully shaved while his eyes were covered by a green domino mask.

“Ollie, you’re staring again,” Dinah Lance, the Black Canary, said with a confident smirk.

“Oh, sorry,” Oliver Queen, the Green Arrow, said while turning back to the monitor. “This is turning out to be quite the mess.”

“That it is,” Black Canary nodded. “At the very least, no major news organizations have picked up on the children yet.”

“But they know eight people fell through before the creatures did,” Green Arrow pointed out. “If we aren’t careful, those kids will have their faces plastered all over the eight o’clock news. We can’t let that happen.”

“Amen to that.” The two superheroes lapsed back to contemplative silence, continuing to watch the TV monitors in front of them. By now, several news outlets were shifting focus to a press conference held by Lex Luthor, who was offering praise and condolences to the brave men and women who gave their lives defending Metropolis from the creatures. He was even setting up a fund to support their grieving families, starting with a substantial donation from LexCorp.

All of the stations were owned by him of course, and while some of the money would go towards the families, most would undoubtedly be funneled back into LexCorp as a tax write off, allowing him to use the money for illegal weapons development and research. It sickened them both, but so far nothing they’ve done to him has managed to stick. He was just too rich and powerful for anyone to nail.

“ _Green Arrow, Black Canary,_ ” J’onn’s voice suddenly rang out over the intercom, “ _I just received word from Superman. The General has released the children into our custody, and they will be in the teleporting bay momentarily._ ”

“On our way,” Green Arrow immediately answered as he and Black Canary moved off the railing. Moving at a brisk pace, they walked through the corridors of the Watchtower towards the central teleporter. Soon they found themselves at the automatic doors to the circular room. A large terminal stood in front of a central pad, with a single man working at the instruments diligently.

“Mister Terrific,” Green Arrow greeted as the world’s third smartest man waved at them from behind his back. Covering his face was a painted black T, easily visible against his dark skin. Clad in red and white, three metal orbs with red T’s on them hovered around his shoulders, helping to monitor the complex Apokolips-derived technology before them.

“Queen, Lance,” he said from over his shoulder. “Teleporter’s looking good. Fluctuations normal, and everything is green. Bringing them over now.”

“Do you really have to do this every time?” Dinah asked with an amused smile.

“Yes, otherwise your atoms would get shot apart from one another. You’d get arms where legs were supposed to be, bodies molded into steel, entire organs missing, or even two organisms merging with one another. And _those_ are the good options.”

“Point taken,” Dinah conceded with her hands raised up. With an amused shake of his head, Mister Terrific pressed the final activation key and watched as the teleporter shone with a column of shimmering light. Slowly at first, the bodies of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and the other on-site League Members appeared, along with the eight unconscious bodies of the alien children.

“Goddamn,” Oliver whispered as he took in their condition. Laying in gurneys, their injuries were plain to see. “They look like they just got out of a warzone. What the hell happened?”

“We don’t know,” Superman replied as the patients were wheeled to the medical bay. “They were like this before the creatures…spawned, and Batman doesn’t think those things caused this.”

“Any leads?”

Superman shook his head. “Right now, your guess is as good as mine.”

“I’ll be in the lab, working on the samples,” Batman stated as he took some samples from Flash’s hands. “With any luck, they might shed some light on what those things are.”

“I can tell you one thing,” Flash said as he walked towards the entry door. “those things were not natural. I’ll meet you at the lab, Bats.” With a parting nod, Barry ran off towards the lab, leaving a small gust of wind in his wake.

“I’ll go with John, see what I can do to help them heal,” Superman declared. Batman silently nodded at the alien, who walked away with Diana, Oliver, and Dinah in tow. He then gave an acknowledging look at Mister Terrific, who nodded back before Batman silently left the teleporter bay.

* * *

Everything was warm now. It was strange. She expected the ground to be hard and foreboding, not soft and welcoming. It was a good strange, though. Familiar, even. It was nice.

Vision slowly came to her, albeit heavily blurred.  White sheets covered her body, which was itself wearing a white hospital gown. Was she in a hospital? How long was she out? Were her friends with her? She hoped they were.

She could see a tube extending out of her arm now. It was thin and transparent, with a clear liquid running through it and into her arm. The name escaped her, but she knew the substance was helping her heal, so she left it in. Besides, she was just too tired to try and move.

Now she could see a figure on the far end of the room. It looked to be a man working at a terminal that kept beeping. Frankly, it was annoying, but then the man turned towards her. Somehow, he had noticed that she was stirring and was now coming to check on her. She felt relief.

That relief disappeared as soon as she saw his green skin. At once, uncontrollable fear rippled through her body, and the incessant beeping became alarmingly fast. Her vision, once steadily improving, was now getting darker and blurrier by the second. The man seemed alarmed and was rushing over to her, and her fear increased.

“Brainiac…” she whispered in panic before finally losing consciousness once more.

* * *

“Jesus, what is this stuff?” Barry muttered as he stared at the frozen sample through a microscope. His mask was down, revealing his short brown hair. His face was scrunched in confusion as he tried to wrap his brain around the material before him.  They had spent the last several hours poking and prodding at their dwindling supply of samples, and so far it defied explanation. “I’m not seeing any organic structures in here. Just black goo.”

“Spectrograph doesn’t match any known element on the periodic table,” Batman added, his voice slightly betraying his confusion. “No trace of organic compounds in its composition. It’s all one uniform substance.”

“One that doesn’t react to any external stimuli. Intense heat burns it away and ice can contain it, sure, but it doesn’t conduct electricity, doesn’t have a boiling point, and it doesn’t actually freeze. It’s just in a…permanent liquid state. The creepiest part, though, is that things go in and just don’t come out. I prodded it with a rod and it _ate_ it.” Flash held up the metal rod, bite marks clearly seen.

“Except for the black creatures.” Batman was now looking at recordings of the battle, taken from security cameras, body cameras, and risk-taking reporters. “They seem to react acutely to emotions. Specifically fear, which seems to increase agitation. Possible extreme predatory instinct that overrides survival instinct.”

“You seem unsure.”

“Nature of decomposition indicates that the creatures are not biological.” Batman typed away on a monitor, documenting their findings. “No trace of any body, and despite the number of creatures that emerged from the tar, the level never decreased. I can only assume the vaporization is connected. You were right, Flash. These things are not natural.”

“Magic?”

“Probably. I’ll get in touch with John Constantine. He might be able to figure out what this stuff is. Either him or Zatanna.”

“Doctor Fate might be able to help as well,” Flash added. “Maybe we—”

“ _Flash, Batman, you are needed in the medical bay immediately!_ ” J’onn suddenly declared over the intercom.

“J’onn, what’s wrong?” Batman asked as he rose to his feet and walked to the door.

“ _One of the children woke up._ ”

* * *

By the time the two arrived in the medical bay, all of the League Founders were standing in the room, watching the children for any signs of activity. So far, all were silent.

“So, run it by me again?” Flash asked, his eyes darting between the Martian Manhunter and the eight patients.

“It is as I said. I was monitoring their vitals and running blood tests when the silver-eyed girl woke up. When I went to check on her, she suffered a panic attack upon seeing me and promptly passed out. Whether it was due to fear or fatigue, I do not know. Before she did, she mentioned the name Brainiac.”

“Brainiac,” Superman muttered. “That name sounds familiar. I might have seen it before in my father’s memories. I should check the Fortress to be sure.”

“Tell us what you find,” Batman responded before turning towards J’onn. “Have the blood tests finished?”

“They did just before the girl awoke,” he revealed. “The results are…interesting.”

“In what regards?” Shayera asked, her helmet placed on a nearby metal table.

“For starters, they are almost identical to humans. Same internal organ structure, cellular composition, DNA structure, number of chromosomes and neural pathways. The blonde girl is the half-sister of the silver-eyed girl from a paternal lineage, the others share no relations among them. No evidence of genetic tampering or modifications, as well. There are, however, a few key distinctions.” J’onn turned towards a nearby screen and activated it. Pictures of their DNA appeared, with several sections highlighted and emphasized while X-Rays appeared next to their strands.

“Their muscular and skeletal structures are denser than a baseline human being’s. One of the girls in particular has a unique genetic makeup that contains trace amounts of feline DNA, along with a higher number of photosensitive rod cells and a functional dual auditory system.”

“You mean those cat ears aren’t only real and natural, but they work, too?” Flash asked, slightly skeptical. “GL, you ever come across something like that?”

“Once or twice. It’s rare, but not unprecedented,” John shook his head. “The others don’t have the extra DNA?”

“No. There is one more key detail. All of them have an active meta gene”

“All of them?” Diana asked, slightly surprised. On Earth and most other planets, the meta gene was quite rare. To have all eight have them, active at that, was highly peculiar.

“Yes. I discovered it when I was trying to take their blood. Their bodies seem to emit some kind of barrier field along their skin and clothes. The field further increases their muscle density, electrical impulse speed, and from what I can tell, increases their bodies’ natural healing.” He zoomed in on one of the x-rays, focusing on a heavily fractured arm. “The red-haired girl’s broken arm is healing quite rapidly, and should be fully recovered in a few days.”

“Fascinating.” Superman looked at the arm in question with his X-Ray Vision and saw that J’onn’s statement was correct. The last time he saw the arm, it was clearly broken in several different places along the radius and ulna, almost in two. Those breaks were significantly tighter now, and he could see the bones continuing to mend. “How long do you think they’ll be out?”

“Hard to say. Could be hours, even days. At the very least their brains show no signs of any long term damage. It appears that the field naturally healed it first before moving on.”

“Good to hear,” Superman nodded. “In the meantime, I’ll head down to the Fortress. See what I can find on Brainiac. I’ll relay to you all whatever I can find.”

“Please do,” Batman said. “I’ll be back in the lab. There’s a few more tests I want to run on the remaining samples before disposal, along with their equipment.”

“Sounds good to me. I’ll be in the cafeteria. Didn’t have time to eat lunch before I ran over, and I’m starving.” Flash’s statement was met with a loud growl from his stomach, causing Diana to lightly smile and John to groan.

“What, I can’t help it! My powers make my metabolism insane,” Flash defended himself with a pout, causing Shayera to laugh.

“Don’t worry, Barry. He’s just in a grumpy mood today. Come on, I’ll join you.”

“I will as well,” J’onn added. “Based off the events from earlier, it may not be best for me to be with them.”

“The more the merrier!”

“I’ll have Green Arrow and Black Canary watch over them for any signs of activity,” Batman declared as he walked out the door. “Call me once they wake up.”

With that, the informal meeting was adjourned and they all went their separate ways. For a moment, Diana considered going towards the cafeteria before deciding instead to walk with Batman towards the lab.

“Princess.”

“Bruce.”

The exchange was curt and to the point, but Diana recognized the thankful tone in his voice. It was subtle, but it was there all the same.

* * *

Flying was always liberating to Clark. The feeling of weightlessness, soaring through the air like a bird, feeling the wind brush past his face and the warmth of the sun’s rays beaming down on him. He could honestly say it was his favorite ability. It was liberating.

Flying high in the atmosphere also came with another benefit. Everything was quiet. On the ground, he had to constantly focus to block out what he didn’t want to hear. If he wanted, he could hear a person’s conversation in China from his cubicle in the Daily Planet. But in the highest reaches of the atmosphere, sounds were muted by the thin air. He could still hear things, but he didn’t have to focus as hard to drown them out.

The silence also allowed him to think. Usually it was about a myriad of things, from Luthor’s latest schemes, how to use Kryptonian technology to better mankind, or even where he was going to take Lois on their next date. Right now, he was focused entirely on the children now under their care. Their physical conditions, how they managed to get a Mother Box, the creatures that came with them, everything. Most importantly, who or what caused their injuries. At least now he had a name.

Clark slowed as he neared the deepest region of the Antarctic. Far from the observing eyes of any human being stood a towering crystalline fortress, vaguely shaped like a pyramid. The light’s rays refracted off of its surface, making it shine brilliantly across the desolate ice and snow. A single entrance laid within a small crevice at its base, a golden metal door emblazoned with the insignia of the House of El at the top. The sight made him smile. It was here, inside his Fortress of Solitude, where he was truly able to retreat from the world.

The doors opened automatically as he neared them. As they did, warm air briefly escaped from the interior before the doors closed behind him. At once, the noise from the outside world ceased, and he could only hear the faint and subtle movements of air within the crystalline walls and floors. Never once touching the ground, he passed by his trophy room and zoological preserve without pause. His eyes were set on a massive statue sitting atop a sunstone base, one he made himself that depicted his parents, Jor-El and Lara-El, holding the doomed world of Krypton atop their hands. He had spent weeks designing it, and several days carving it from a single block of steel with his heat vision.

“Greetings, Kal-El,” a robotic voice greeted him as a conical drone floated to him. “Do you require assistance?”

“I’ll be fine. Thank you.” He nodded to the robot, which left without saying a word. He turned back to the statue then walked in between the feet of his parents. As he did, a section of the floor beneath him descended into a large cavern filled with crystals. A singular crystal towered over all the others, it shining faintly despite having no access to the sun. Once the platform stopped moving, he walked to a distinct section of the mineral array that looked similar to a control board. His hands quickly moved between the gems, gently touching the tips of select crystals that slid down at his touch. As the last prism slid down, the crystal tower shone brilliantly and emitted a ray of light into another formation. The beam refracted and split, each beam hitting another clear gem and repeating the process until finally the beams converged in the center of the cavern. From the convergence, a form began to appear of a bearded middle-aged Kryptonian wearing a robes, and Clark smiled.

“Father.”

“Kal-El,” the holographic memory of his father smiled. It might only be an artificial projection made from Jor-El’s downloaded memories, but he treated it as his father nonetheless. “Something has happened, hasn’t it?”

“Yes,” Clark replied with a sigh. “Does the name “Brainiac” mean anything to you?” Jor-El’s alarmed expression answered his question immediately, and his worry grew.

* * *

“These weapons are fascinating,” Diana muttered as she held the boxy sniper-rifle in her hand. With a quick exertion, the weapon unfolded and shifted into a massive scythe, and she gave a few swings as a test. “Perfectly balanced as well. Whoever made this was quite skilled. Honestly, the thought of combining a sniper rifle with a scythe would have never occurred to me.”

“Likewise,” Batman curtly replied as he disassembled the rapier. A few dull crystalline particles were inside glass cylinders attached to the hilt like a revolver. For some reason, they appeared…inert, to his eyes. Lifeless. If the crystals did anything, he suspected they were useless now.

“You sound disapproving.” Diana’s statement earned a scoff from the dark knight, making her smile.

“Still,” she continued as she folded the weapon and placed it down onto the workbench, “the fact that they were all armed contributes to the idea they were in a fight. All of them sport heavy damage to their structural integrity. A few more hits and they’d be falling apart.”

“I’m more curious as to what they used as ammunition,” he said as he ran some of the crystal dust between his fingertips. “Most of them seem to fire some kind of bullet. Judging by the remaining casings in the chambers, they appeared to be a mixture of shotgun shells, pistol and rifle ammunition, but no traces of gunpowder or similar propellants.”

“Do you think those weapons used the dust?” Diana asked as she leaned over Bruce’s shoulder to get a closer look.

“Perhaps. It is possible that, whatever this substance is, it used to hold special properties that made it useful as a propellant. Now, however, it doesn’t do anything. It’s…perplexing.” He sounded annoyed, and Diana patted his shoulder.

“If anyone can figure it out, it would be you.” Diana then took some of the dust and rubbed it with her fingers. “It’s some kind of crystal, but nothing like I’ve ever seen. Did the spectrograph say anything about it?”

He shook his head. “The readings proved inconclusive. These crystals aren’t made up of anything on the periodic table. Which is odd, because the rest of the weapons are identifiable.”

“Let me guess: steel?”

“Mostly. They’re made of high-grade steel or bronze alloys with titanium frames. There’s a few traces of carbon and tin for reinforcement. Interestingly enough, there are trace amounts of that crystalline substance mixed within most of the alloys, as if it was involved in the smelting or forging process somehow.” He turned to face the Amazon princess, holding the rapier aloft. “That’s not the most important element I’ve gathered from these weapons. Except for the sword and shield, these weapons are too customized to be standard issue weaponry. All those moving parts would require far too much maintenance to be practical for armies or police, which tells me that they were a specialized fighting unit. Perhaps akin to special forces or, given their ages, trainees. It’s possible that they were training to combat the creatures we fought in Metropolis. Might explain why they would even consider the shifting mechanic. Melee combat might have become inevitable against them.”

“Not to mention their outfits. Far too colorful.” Diana paused as a thought came to mind. “Perhaps they’re similar to us?”

“Maybe. The thought has come to mind.” Bruce sighed, placed the rapier down, and stood up. “This is as far as we can go with what we have. I’ve already sent a sample down to Constantine, Doctor Fate, and Zatanna. They’ll be able to help determine what the tar exactly is. In the meantime, all we can do now is wait for Clark to come back and—”

A loud, dull thud sounded off across the Watchtower, stopping Bruce in his tracks. He and Diana turned to the door, wondering just what it was, when another thud was heard. Then another, and another yet again.

“ _All League members to the medical bay! All League members to the medical bay!_ ” Green Arrow’s voice frantically yelled over the intercom, the sounds of arrows flinging from bowstrings and piercing screams behind him. “ _The kids woke up, and they’re pissed!_ ”

Batman was already out the door before the red alarm lights blared throughout the Watchtower, Wonder Woman hot on his heels.

* * *

“Calm down!” Green Arrow yelled as he dodged yet another haymaker from the blonde girl in front of him, her eyes glowing red in rage even as he spun her around and threw her to the floor. He was able to make that distinction as they were definitely not red when she first woke up. In fact, they were lilac originally.

It had happened so fast. One minute, he and Dinah were checking on the monitors when the cat girl suddenly woke up and started freaking out. An obvious panic attack from PTSD if he ever saw one, and the two of them tried to calm her down. That’s when she ripped a metal pole off the bed and began swinging it clumsily like a sword, still disoriented from her ordeal yet still making sizable dents whenever she struck metal. He then tried to grab her, although each time he did she somehow made a copy of herself that disappeared upon contact. Admittedly, it was annoying, but Dinah was eventually able to hold her down. Then the blonde girl woke up, saw Dinah holding onto the struggling cat girl, then her eyes turned red and her hair caught fire.

That’s when he took the cue to duck as the girl got off the bed and hurled the whole thing at him through the window. Dinah had to let go of the cat girl as the blonde then tried to punch her, the blow shattering a nearby station. For a solid minute, the two League members tried to calm the two panicking and angry girls down, but they weren’t having it. When the blonde crumpled a steel door with another fist, continuing to try and to attack them out of an out of control fight or flight instinct, the Green Arrow and Black Canary realized talking wasn’t going to cut it. Reluctantly, Oliver shot a net arrow at the girls to restrain them, lest they hurt themselves or the superheroes, only for a few more problems to show themselves. One, they didn’t speak the same language, which made communication rather difficult between the two parties. Second, the others woke up shortly after he trapped them in the net, and upon seeing their states, they got mad and rushed him and Dinah.

“ _Get away from her!_ ” the silver-eyed girl yelled out incomprehensibly as she ran towards the archer, rose petals trailing behind her as she clumsily attempted to attack him. It was clear that, even beside her disorientation, she wasn’t the most skilled at hand-to-hand, having left far too many openings for Oliver to exploit, and exploit them he did. He twisted his body around her outstretched arm and wrapped his bow around her chest, bringing her struggling body to his.

“We are not your enemy! Please, stop!” he pleaded once more, but the others either didn’t understand him or didn’t care. Probably a little of both, if he was being honest. Still, he had to deliberately hold himself back or else he would run the risk of hurting them, something he definitely did not want to do, even as the blond boy rushed him.

Green Arrow immediately reacted by throwing the girl into him, sending them sprawling against the floor while he pulled a boxing glove arrow from his quiver, drew it, and shot the Asian-looking boy in the face. He fell to his knees in surprise and clutched his face in pain while orange-haired girl cried out what he could only guess was his name. She then looked at the archer in absolute fury before noticing a light above them. Realization seemed to flash across her face as she suddenly punched a hole into the wall and pulled out a cord. She then ripped it in half, causing the light to go out and forcing the electricity to flow into her.

“What are you…?!” Oliver shouted in alarm as electricity coursed through her. Rather than collapsing in pain, the girl’s face erupted into a wicked grin. At once he understood exactly what had occurred, and he could only groan. “Great, you get stronger from electricity. _Perfect_.”

The girl responded by springing towards him to try and deliver a punch. Green Arrow kicked off the wall adjacent to him and dodged while her fist impacted the metal. It dented and warped from the impact. The girl pulled back to try and throw another punch, only for Black Canary to shriek loudly at her, the concentrated soundwaves slamming her back against another wall.

“Kids, calm down. You’re safe here,” she pleaded with her hands raised up. This gesture didn’t work as the white-haired girl formed some kind of glowing symbol that looked vaguely like a snowflake under the glass shards and launched them towards the Black Canary. She responded by shrieking at the glass shards, the vibrations shattering the glass into harmless particles and throwing the children back down the hall.

As they picked themselves up, Oliver idly wondered just where the hell the others were. His thoughts were answered as a red blur raced towards them, and the archer recognized the Flash immediately. The children now stared at the Scarlet Speedster in both apprehension and confusion, taking defensive stances as the Flash held his hands.

“Easy, easy,” he spoke soothingly. “You’re among friends here. Just calm down, and we can figure everything out.”

“ _What are they saying?_ ” the girl with the broken-arm asked, the blond boy placing himself in front of her protectively, likely due to her injury. Judging by her face, she didn’t know how to feel about that.

“ _I don’t know,_ ” he responded, his voice tense. “ _Guys, I… I think we should stop. I don’t think they’re trying to hurt us._ ”

“ _No chance in Hell,_ ” the blonde girl shouted back, her eyes still red, _“not until we figure out just what is going on! How are we supposed to know they aren’t with Brainiac?!”_

‘ _Please, listen to him,_ ’ J’onn’s voice suddenly rang out telepathically, startling the children. That turned into fear as the Martian Manhunter emerged from the ground in front of them, which was showcased by their tentative steps back. They might have tried to run, only for Batman, Diana, Green Lantern and Shayera to cut them off. Seeing how they were staying put, J’onn continued. ‘ _We mean you no harm. You were injured, and we took you in for treatment. We are not your enemy._ ’

“ _How are we supposed to believe that?_ ” the cat-girl asked, still holding the metal pole like a sword. J’onn responded by waving his hands at everyone and taking a few steps back. Taking the cue, the others stepped back and lowered their arms and weapons as well.

‘ _Please, trust us. We only want to help._ ’

“ _I… I don’t…_ ” the silver-eyed girl stammered, looking between all of them as she and the others struggled to decide on what to do. Realization that they weren’t in danger was beginning to flow across their faces, as well hints of regret and shame for lashing out in fear. It was then that they heard another door opening, and they turned to see a solemn Superman walking towards them, his face ashen white.

“J’onn, I need you to link us,” he said, his voice struggling to contain itself. The other League members all looked at each other in worry. J’onn merely nodded and did as requested. As he did, he saw what Clark had learned, and he recoiled.

“No…” he gasped as an all too familiar painful memory suddenly resurfaced. The others grew more alarmed, with Batman’s eyes widening in silent, horrified realization, yet were silent as Superman calmly walked towards them, stopping to kneel before the silver-eyed girl. She looked at him in a mixture of confusion, fear, and wonder as did the others. When he placed his hand on her shoulder, the blonde girl moved to stop him, only to be silenced as Superman pulled the young girl into a gentle hug.

“I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.” For a moment, the girl was still and unmoving before she slowly slid her hands against his back to return the hug. She then buried her head in his shoulder and began to weep.

[~][~]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, everyone! Welcome to the next chapter of Hunters of Justice. Things are picking up now. Not much focus on RWBY/JNPR, but this crossover treats both the RWBY side and the DC side equally. It was important to understand who the Justice League were in the context of our story, so having a chapter entirely devoted to their Point of View as crucial. There will be other chapters similar to this, while others will be from the perspective mostly of RWBY/JNPR.
> 
> Now, let me be clear, this story's continuity is not constrained by one single DC continuity. The three of us found that to be far too constricting, so what we've done is take elements from a variety of DC sources and merged parts together to form our own continuity. For instance, the Justice League founders, as you saw, were the founders from the DC Animated Universe (you will notice that the DCAU is the core of this story's continuity), while General Swanwick came from the DC Extended Universe. You'll notice other continuities as well, including Injustice, Post-Crisis comics continuity, Arkhamverse, New 52, DC Rebirth, DC Animated Movies Universe, Young Justice, Teen Titans (2003), and more. Just because one thing happened in another continuity does not mean it will happen or has happened in this one. You'll learn more about HoJ's continuity as time goes on.
> 
> Please let us know what you think, and we hope you enjoy!


	3. Last Sons and Daughters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> RWBY and JNPR adjust to their new home while dealing with the fallout of Remnant's destruction, while the Justice League try to help them acclimate to Earth and recover from their collective trauma.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 3: Last Sons and Daughters **

* * *

 

It was an odd thing, staring at a planet from orbit. One could see practically everything from there, from the vast mountain ranges to the wide-open seas. From the great plains to dry deserts, and arctic tundra to bustling city lights, Ruby and the others saw it all. It was truly a sight to behold, one that they took in for all its worth.

Especially as, the last time they looked upon a planet from orbit, it was their home being destroyed. That memory was forever burned into all their minds, and none of them thought it would ever truly go away.

“It’s breathtaking, isn’t it? Really puts things into perspective,” they heard someone say, making all of them turn their heads to see a man clad in red and blue staring out at the planet below them. His red cape draped behind him, and Ruby allowed herself to faintly smile.

“Superman,” Ruby greeted, happy to see the Man of Steel once more. They had been on the Watchtower for a few days now, the vast majority of which had them stuck in the medical bay as the Justice League, the group they found themselves the guests of, monitored their condition and tried to decipher their language.

At first, the League tried using the lantern ring John Stewart had, as apparently it served as a universal translator, only to find that Vytalian wasn’t in its databanks. After that, they discussed bringing in some woman named Koriand’r, only to decide for whatever reason that it was not a good idea. It was only after RWBY and JNPR finally relented and let J’onn J’onzz probe their minds and learn their language that they were finally able to communicate. They then spent the rest of the week learning English, helped by J’onn’s mental prodding. That experience had been weird, to say the least, and it wasn’t one any of them were eager to repeat.

“I’m not disturbing anything, am I?” he asked, trying to remain courteous. Ruby appreciated the attempt.

“No, not at all,” Pyrrha waved him off. “Just…soaking it in. Being in space and all.”

“Many would share that feeling,” Superman smiled then turned towards them. The next question hung over the air, one they all knew was coming. Finally, after a long moment of silence, Superman gently spoke. “How are you all holding up?”

“We’re…” Weiss paused and looked back down on the planet below. The people here called it Earth, an unimaginative name for a planet if she’d ever heard one, but then again, they called their home planet Remnant. “We’re doing better. Still… processing.”

“I understand. Take your time,” Superman nodded then patted her shoulder. “Know that we’re here to talk whenever you want.” At that, Superman turned around and walked out of the observatory, the doors opening and closing automatically behind him, leaving them alone once more. The eight former students turned back to the window, and each let out a long sigh.

“I can’t believe this is happening,” Jaune finally spoke up, breaking the silence.

“I know what you mean.” Yang nodded solemnly. “It feels so unreal. Remnant is…gone, and now were on another planet.”

“A space station orbiting a planet,” Blake corrected, “run by people that look like they popped straight out of one of those comic books Ruby reads all the time.”

“Yeah…” Ruby sighed as she leaned forward on the railing in front of her. “Superheroes. Actual superheroes, and not just Huntsmen stylizing themselves after them. Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman. I won’t lie and say it’s not cool.” Ruby chuckled. Truth be told, had she been in a lighter state of mind, she’d probably be jumping off the walls in excitement and curiosity, but right now she just didn’t have it in her.

“Batman scares me,” Jaune admitted.

“Same.”

“Total agreement there.”

“It’s like he’s a male Goodwitch, only dressed like a bat.”

The others quickly responded, and then they all laughed. Sensing an opportunity, Jaune backed up from the railing and dramatically threw his arm over his face, as if he was holding a cape.

“Evil beware, for I am the night!” he declared dramatically, causing everyone to laugh at his antics. “Look at my batsuit and see how serious I am!”

The others continued to laugh, and Jaune pressed on. “With a single glare, I can silence anyone from saying how ridiculous I look, because I am just that dark and scary! I can—”

“Are you finished?”

“Aagh!” the others jumped as Batman suddenly made his presence known. He was standing in a far corner of the observatory, staring at them from underneath his bat-like cowl, his eyes hidden under a white sheen and still clad in his armored batsuit. Ruby felt it was simultaneously the most intimidating and coolest looking costume she had ever laid eyes on, but she wasn’t about to admit that.

“How…how long were you there?” Jaune asked, deeply embarrassed.

“Long enough,” he replied, continuing to stare at the others.

“Oh.” Jaune grew silent. He could feel Batman staring at him, and even if he wasn’t trying to intimidate him, it still happened. “So, uh… Do you need us or…?”

“Food is ready in the mess hall,” Batman answered and walked to the door. “Just wanted to let you all know that.” He paused at the now opened door. “Also, whenever you’re ready to talk, just come and find me.”

He walked through the threshold, which closed behind him with a soft hiss, leaving the students alone once more. They were all silent as they stared at the door.

“… It’s like there needs to be a bell on that guy,” Yang finally said, and the others all nodded in agreement.

* * *

 

“Did you really need to do that, Bruce?” Diana asked as she and Batman walked to the mess hall, the red, blue, and gold-colored metal plates of her Amazonian armor clattering against each other.

“It wasn’t my intention to frighten them,” he responded, to which Diana rolled her eyes.

“Let’s be honest, Bruce. You tend to scare people, sometimes.” Batman looked at her, and she laughed. “Okay, a lot. You scare people a lot. I’m beginning to think you enjoy it.”

Batman remained silent as he continued to walk forward, causing Diana to huff in amusement. “Of course you do. You can afford to be less…tense here, you know?”

“No.” Diana expected his response, and merely sighed. Before she could respond, she heard soft steps coming from behind, and the two turned around to see the children tentatively walking behind them. Diana smiled warmly and waited for them while Batman continued.

“Hello, Diana,” Ruby smiled warmly at her, as did the others. They always liked speaking to the Wonder Woman, as she frequently came by to check in on them.

“Hello, Ruby,” Diana greeted then walked as they caught up to her. “I’m happy to see you all joining us.”

They continued to walk in silence through the Watchtower, occasionally spotting other superheroes heading towards the mess hall or back from it. Most of them they didn’t recognize, although each were memorable. As they finally entered the mess hall, they were greeted by the sight of nearly a hundred men and women intermingling with each other, each wearing unique costumes as they ate and talked. Some were simply wearing colorful body suits while others were wearing full sets of armor. One man didn’t even have a face, but it was his insane conspiracies about sinister aglets that made Ruby and the others stay clear. They saw Green Arrow and Black Canary eating together and enjoying each other’s company, and Nora glared at the archer. She still hadn’t forgiven him for hitting Ren in the face with a boxing glove arrow, although Yang frankly found it to be hysterical.

Walking through the mess hall, they felt a few heroes looking at them, but none moved to interact. After all, they were still getting used to their new environment. None of the heroes quite knew exactly what to do. Except for one, who ran up to them in a red blur.

“Sup, guys!” Flash greeted with a smile, still dressed in his familiar red and gold-trimmed suit and wearing his mask. Unlike Batman’s cowl, Flash’s mask did not hide his blue eyes from view, and they were filled with nothing but life.

“I saved you guys a seat. Wanna join me?” Flash offered, and while the children thought it over, Diana saw immediately what he was trying to do. Barry, more so than most of them, was able to easily connect with people. They had bonded with him the quickest over their week-long stay in the Watchtower, as he would frequently visit them whenever he had the chance, if only to try and talk to them.

“I think that is a wonderful idea, Flash,” she said with a smile before turning to the others. “How about you?”

“Sure!” Nora exclaimed with a grin. “Don’t think I’m going to forget about our rematch, Flash.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it, Nora.” Flash grinned while the others quickly recoiled. “May the best eater win.”

“You’re on!” With that, Nora and Flash raced to the food line, leaving the others in their wake.

“…I better go with them. Make sure Nora doesn’t go overboard,” Ren said as he followed after his frenetic partner. The others merely sighed before grabbing a tray of chicken, mixed vegetables and rice and walked to a nearby table. They sat silently as they ate, content to merely eat and try not to watch Nora and Flash race to earn the title of world’s greatest human vacuum.

“Honestly, never thought I’d see the day where Nora would lose in an eating contest,” Yang finally said, unable to keep her gaze away. A few League members were now cheering the two on as a mountain of food shrunk between them, while others turned away in disgust.

“Flash’s powers make his metabolism extremely high. He has to eat as much as he can,” Diana explained as she watched the two continue. “I don’t think even Superman could out eat him.”

“Really?” Jaune hummed to himself before shaking his head. “Really, this entire thing is just…”

“Bizarre?”

“That’s one word for it, sure.” Jaune sighed as he poked at his meal, looking at the others before turning back to see a victorious Flash holding his arms aloft over a defeated Nora, Ren rubbing his hand across her prone shoulders. He then turned to look at the rest of his friends, a silent conversation ensuing between them while Diana patiently waited.

“Listen, we’ve been talking and…” Jaune stopped and sighed, rubbing the back of his head. “We know that you’ve all been patient with us, trying to help us cope with what…happened and everything. But…”

“Don’t worry, I understand,” Diana smiled as she placed her hand on his shoulder. “We’ll only talk about your home when you all are comfortable. Just know that you have people here that are more than happy to help.”

“Thank you,” Ruby said as she looked down. Diana continued to eat her food silently. They were hurting, and it was likely that they would continue to hurt for quite some time. Trying to press the issue and, for lack of a better word, interrogate them would only make them withdraw further. Bruce had been quite adamant about that. Still, things weren’t going as fast as they needed, on both sides. They needed to take a different approach.

A thought suddenly came to mind, one that made Diana smile to herself. It was so simple, she was surprised it hadn’t been done yet.

“Have you all talked to Superman yet?” Her question prompted confused glances from the children.

“A few times,” Ruby admitted. “Why?”

* * *

 

They found Superman floating in front of a large window in the control room, staring down on Earth and letting the Sun’s rays hit him. Despite not knowing him very well, they had to admit seeing him was awe inspiring. They could see the power contained within his muscles, the strength of will his eyes offered glimpses into. It felt like a bottomless well, that trying to see how deep they go would only make one lost and feel insignificant. And yet, a man of that strength and power hugged a distraught girl, simply to let her know everything would be alright.

Things weren’t alright, but it was the thought that counted.

“Superman,” Diana greeted, causing Superman to smile and float down towards them.

“Diana, Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Yang, Jaune, Nora, Ren, Pyrrha,” he greeted all of them with a warm smile.

“Hi,” Ruby greeted, complete with a small wave. The others followed, although Nora’s was much more enthusiastic. “How’s Metropolis?”

Superman he nodded as he stepped up to them “The situation in Metropolis has been contained, for the most part. But, things have been…hectic, to say the least.”

“It certainly looked like it. You guys were lucky you contained it so quickly,” Ruby said. They had seen on the TVs in their room that their arrival in Metropolis was followed by a short Grimm invasion, one that rivaled the Breach at the very least. Had it not been contained, things could have gotten very bad very quickly. It was that same report that showed them exactly who they were in the company of, how strong they were as well as their capabilities. It was impressive, to say the least.

“Yes, those… Grimm, you called them?” Ruby and the others nodded, and Superman continued. “Those Grimm were something else entirely. You sure you don’t know anything else about them?”

“Nothing. Back home, we’d tried to examine Grimm more closely for eons, but never had any success,” Weiss answered. When they had learned that Earth had no such thing as Grimm and that Metropolis was the first time they had ever encountered them, at first RWBY and JNPR were confused. The concept of a world without Grimm was almost as alien as the world they were orbiting. It was then that Weiss realized that Earth truly was alien, and as such no Grimm on Earth made total sense. Grimm might have been commonplace back on Remnant, but Earth wasn’t Remnant. It was reasonable that the Grimm were previously confined to their doomed home. That admittedly brought some satisfaction to her, but not much.

“Hmm, unfortunate,” Superman cupped his chin and shook his head. “But enough about that. There’s something I wanted to show you.”

“Oh, what is it?” Jaune asked, mildly curious.

Superman smiled. “It’s a surprise, but I can’t show you all in here. How would you guys like to accompany me down to Earth? Get a closer look?”

Ruby and the others all looked at each other then back at Superman, a mixture of emotions racing through them. On the one hand, they had been cooped up in the Watchtower for days, only able to see the Earth from high orbit. Simple curiosity demanded they go down there and explore it for themselves. They all longed for the feel of the breeze on their faces, the scent of ocean salt and the general weight of natural gravity not produced by artificial gravity generators. But that led into their biggest problem with going down there. Earth wasn’t their home, and nothing would ever replace that.

“Sure,” Yang suddenly spoke for all of them. Weiss and the others all looked at her, but Yang merely rolled her shoulders. “I don’t know about you, but simply staying up here and moping is not going to solve our problems. And I’m tired of moping.”

They thought over her words before nodding in turn.

“Quick question,” Blake spoke up, “how are we going to get down there?”

* * *

 

The air was calm around the Kent Family farm. A light breeze whistled through fields of corn and wheat, powering a windmill as it creaked and spun. The sound of birds chirping and singing filled the air while the summer sun shone down from above. Everything was perfect and peaceful.

That peace was shattered as a blue shimmer of light shone down from high above. From the light emerged Superman, along with the eight teenagers. For a moment, they all stood proudly and took a deep breath of the countryside air, and then the teens curled over and began to hurl.

“Yeah, it takes a little getting used to,” Clark said as he patted Jaune’s back while the boy continued to empty his stomach of its contents.

“Wha…” Jaune said as he slowly managed to reign himself in, “What was that!?”

“Teleportation Sickness,” Superman spoke softly as he helped Pyrrha stand, who was wobbling on her feet. “Don’t worry, it happened to all of us the first time. Some had more extreme reactions than others.”

“That was the weirdest thing that’s ever happened to me,” Yang spoke through wide eyes. “Kinda want to do it again.”

“Really?” Blake asked with raised eyebrows while clutching her stomach.

“Yes.”

“Honestly…”

“Just tell me once the world stops spinning…” Ruby wobbled in place. Only after a few more minutes did Ruby and her friends finally regain their full composure, and it was then that they realized just where they were.

“You…wanted to show us a farm?” Weiss asked as she took everything in. “What’s so important about a farm?”

“Well,” Superman chuckled, “I grew up here. I like to think that makes it pretty important.”

“Oh.” Weiss felt sheepish and swiveled her head, taking in the sight of the fields. “It looks…nice?”

“Weiss,” Ruby chastised with a small pout. Weiss merely sighed and threw her hands slightly upwards. Superman merely laughed.

“It’s fine, I understand the country life isn’t for everyone.” Superman stopped and looked up into the clear blue sky. A few small clouds, white and puffy, hung overhead. He smiled then spoke again. “But, I didn’t bring you all here just to show you my old farmhouse.”

The others all raised their eyebrows first, and Superman merely smiled. “I want to show you all something very important to me, something that I think will help. I couldn’t do that at the Watchtower, but I can here. May I?” He held out his hand and smiled warmly. The teenagers, unsure of exactly what he wanted to show them, remained hesitant until Ruby tentatively walked forward.

“Okay,” she said as she walked over to the Kryptonian. She grasped his hand and looked into his eyes and she couldn’t help but smile. “What is it that you wanted to show us?”

“Something that always cheers me up,” he replied through a toothy smile. “Now, make sure you hold on tightly.”

“What are you-?” Ruby asked before Superman gently grabbed hold of her and held her close. He then crouched down, bringing the huntress down with him and making small rocks hover and swirl around his feet. Then, he shot upwards off the ground.

“AAAGH!” Ruby screamed as she and Superman quickly left the ground beneath them, her surprised friends turning into pinpricks. Air whooshed around them as they ascended higher and higher, all the while Ruby continued to cling tightly to the man holding her with her eyes clamped shut.

“Ruby, it’s okay. I got you,” he comforted her. “Look.”

Slowly, Ruby opened her eyes and gasped. They were high above the ground now, to the point where she couldn’t see her friends anymore. Only farmhouses, scattered like islands in seas of grain. The air was thin and cool, but she couldn’t find it in herself to care. Clouds swirled around them, and the only sound they heard was that of the wind. The sun shone down upon them, warming them with its unobstructed rays and casting large shadows that stretched across the ground for miles. It was breathtaking to the young girl as she took in the awesome sight, words unable to describe how she was feeling. A cloud drifted by, and Ruby reached out and put her hand into the saturated mass. She then pulled it out to see that it was damp, and then she finally began to laugh joyously.

Superman smiled then angled himself forward and flew off once again. The clouds zipped by them as the two flew at a comfortable speed, passing by a flock of geese that honked at them. Ruby continued to smile as she experienced flight, and then Superman gently grabbed her arm and thrust it in front of her. She copied his action with her other arm, making both outstretched before her like the nose of an airplane. Happy tears were beginning to fly off her face, and Superman smiled more.

He flew faster now, but not to the point where it could potentially discomfort his passenger. The air whistled and whined as they passed by, but Ruby didn’t care. She was flying like a bird, and as she did, her worries were beginning to melt away.

Superman then angled them downward, descending to the fields below. They skimmed the top of a field of wheat, and Ruby let her fingers brush against their tops while continuing to laugh. A pond emerged in front of them which they passed over quickly, leaving a wake behind them.

“This is amazing!” she shouted over the air as they banked upwards once more. They climbed higher and higher, through both empty air and a billowy cloud until they were once again soaring above it. They hovered in place as they heard a plane pass by overhead. Ruby watched it soar by with awe then angled her head to look at Superman once more. He was smiling, and Ruby couldn’t help but smile right back.

“Thank you,” she said. “Thank you.”

“It’s okay, Ruby. Everything is going to be okay.” He ruffled her hair as they slowly descended back to the Kent Family Farm. She could begin to see her awestruck friends watching them, and she continued to smile brightly as they touched ground. For a split moment after Superman let go, Ruby wobbled, only for him to gently grab her and keep her standing.

“So,” he began as the others all stared at him and Ruby, “who wants to go next?”

* * *

 

After nearly five hours of flight, both around Smallville and farther out, the teleporter bay in the Watchtower shone with light as Superman and the children arrived. Mr. Terrific smiled as he saw the look on all their faces. When they left, they were all scared, subdued, and kept to themselves. Now, they were like entirely different people, so full of happiness and life. The pain was still there, but it was lessened. It was all they could hope for now.

“I take it you all enjoyed yourselves?” Green Arrow, leaning in the entryway, asked as the group walked towards him and Dinah.

“It. Was. Amazing!” Nora exclaimed as she threw her arms in the air. “First we were all “Aagh”! Then were like “whoosh” and “zoom”!” The others laughed at how animated Nora was getting.

“I admit, it was…exhilarating. It was like nothing I’ve ever experienced.” Weiss sighed in contentment then turned to face Superman. “And you do this every day?”

“I do.” Superman nodded. “Now, I don’t know about you, but I’m hungry. What say we all go and get something to eat?”

Superman was answered by eight growling stomachs.

“That sounds lovely,” Pyrrha said with an embarrassed blush.

* * *

 

Dinner at the Watchtower had been a muted affair for RWBY and JNPR the past few days. The stress and trauma of losing their planet, home, and their loved ones made them all withdraw into themselves. Try as the other heroes might, the students were merely content to grab their food and retreat to the medical bay. The tried their best to alleviate their fears, that they were safe amongst them, but their progress the past few days had been slow.

So, when RWBY and JNPR reentered the mess hall with smiles on their faces and wanting to mingle, many of the heroes let out a mass sigh of relief.

“So, there we were. Mortal enemies facing each other in a battle to the death,” Nora theatrically began.

“We were in the Beacon cafeteria having a food fight,” Ren clarified, earning a few chuckles.

“Our battleground was cracked and shadowed by a grand and majestic castle, towering over everyone and with a powerful queen at the top of the highest tower.”

“Nora stacked all the tables on top of each other then proclaimed herself Queen of the Castle.”

“A fierce battle began anew, with each side fighting tooth and nail to prove themselves to be the superior combatants and rule over the land! The General fell quickly, leaving only his queen and her subjects to carry out his will against the four interlopers. Spears were thrown, blades were crossed, and one was sent to the heavens above! But then, a red wind swept through the battlefield and defeated the queen and her subjects!”

“Jaune got knocked out by a turkey almost immediately. Nora knocked Yang through the ceiling with a melon hammer and Pyrrha threw every single soda can at RWBY. Then Ruby used her Semblance to create a whirlwind that wiped us out with all the debris.”

“And so ended the battle for the ages, and the great witch emerged from the wreckage with the wizard to clean up the scars.”

“Ruby won and Professor Goodwitch cleaned up the mess while Professor Ozpin just stood there.”

The mess hall grew quiet at the end of Nora’s tale, with all the heroes staring at the students before Flash suddenly threw his hands in the air.

“Seriously? That’s what qualifies as a food fight on Remnant?!” he exclaimed.

“That’s cuz we’re awesome like that, man,” Yang replied with a smirk. Flash merely chuckled and shook his head. From the other side of the room, Superman watched with a faint smile, Diana and Batman standing alongside him.

“We did the right thing,” Diana declared as RWBY and JNPR continued to mingle. “Their spirits are much brighter now. I can see the hope returning to them.”

“I’m still not comfortable with questioning them yet. If we force it, all we’ll do is just push them away,” Batman stated. For the untrained ear, one might assume Batman’s voice was emotionless. But Superman and Diana could tell he was pleased with their progress.

“Agreed. They need to come to us.” Superman cupped his chin and hummed. “Right now, their biggest issue is feeling that they’re alone with their problems. That no one can truly understand just what they went through.”

“I can think of a few people that also share that.” Batman looked at Superman, who nodded in agreement.

“My thoughts exactly. We’ll let them mingle tonight. Tomorrow morning, we’ll take them to the Fortress.”

* * *

 

“Today was…interesting, to say the least,” Blake stated as she lay in bed. Her hands were crossed behind her head and she stared at the white ceiling. Yang was lying down on her stomach, kicking her feet in the air while the others merely sat on their beds.

“You can say that again,” Jaune said through a smile. His smile soon disappeared and turned into a frown. “Still, being on that farm… It made me think of home.”

“Jaune, I’m sure your family made it,” Pyrrha declared, patting her partner on the shoulder.

“Honestly, I don’t really know what’s worse.” Jaune fell onto his back and sighed. “Either they didn’t make it into Vale and…died,” his breath hitched, and tears began to well, but he continued. “Or they did, only to be shrunken down and put into a goddamn bottle. A bottle that’ll be emptied once Brainiac’s done with them.”

Everyone grew silent at Jaune’s words. Truth was, they were all thinking the same thing. While Ren and Nora’s parents were long dead, the others couldn’t say the same. For all they knew, they were the last of their families, whether captured or not. Sure, a captured family might still be alive, but they might prefer it to being Brainiac’s test subjects.

“It’s not fair,” Weiss spoke softly. “What did we do to deserve this? Why did Brainiac decide that he had the right to do what he did?”

“Sometimes people are cruel,” someone spoke as they entered the room. The Huntsmen looked and saw J’onn standing at the doorway. “Children. May I?”

“Of course. Please.” Ruby nodded and let the Martian Manhunter enter their room. As he did, the others eyed him warily, despite their attempts not to. They knew that they were surrounded by aliens, both from Earth and otherwise, but his green skin and bald head reminded them too much of Brainiac.

“I am not offended. Your fear is understandable,” J’onn suddenly declared, causing the others to nervously shift.

“Oh, right. Mind reading.” Ruby nervously chuckled.

“Speaking of which, thank you for helping us learn English.” Weiss earnestly nodded. “It’s nice being able to talk to everyone.”  
  
“You are welcome, Ms. Schnee.” J’onn sat down on a chair in front of them, and the air grew heavy. None of them knew what to say.

“Has anyone told you the story of how the Justice League came to be formed?” J’onn suddenly asked, catching everyone’s attention.

“Uh…no, not really,” Ren answered.

“Do you mind if I tell it?” the Martian asked. The others looked at each other before looking back and nodding. J’onn nodded back and began to speak.

“It began roughly a thousand years ago, on the planet the people of Earth call Mars. My people called it Ma'aleca'andra, and although it was dry and arid, it was beautiful. Great cities dotted the land, drilling water from deep below to quench our thirst and grow our crops. We were philosophers and scientists, with war a concept long since forgotten. I lived with my wife My’ria’h and our two beautiful children. It was a paradise.”

“What happened?” Nora asked, sensing the dark turn that was about to unfold. J’onn grew grimmer but continued.

“We were attacked by a race of parasitic conquerors called the Imperium. The humans called them White Martians, as their bodies were white and amorphous, and they had assumed them to be from Mars. They were not. The Imperium arrived in the solar system roughly a millennium ago, and they rejected any attempts at peace with my people.” J’onn frowned and his fist tightened before relaxing. “They invaded the planet, wiped out our meager defenses effortlessly and killed anyone they could… Including my family.” J’onn became downcast and the others gasped.

“I’m so sorry,” Yang said, her eyes turning blue.

“It’s alright.” J’onn stood up and walked to the nearby window, staring down on the Earth below. “The Imperium controlled Ma’aleca’andra for the next five hundred years. Any life that existed was slowly stripped away, so thoroughly that to Earth scientists it looked as though life never existed. They filled the atmosphere with smoke, blocking the Sun’s rays from reaching the ground. Plants died, as did the animals that depended on them. After five hundred years, the planet was well and truly dead.

But, the Imperium didn’t get everyone. Including myself, a small army of survivors waged a seemingly endless struggle against our invaders, trying to stop them from destroying the planet. In the end, we managed to create a nerve agent that would place the Imperium into hibernation, and we fought our last stand to deploy it.”

“You succeeded, I take it.” Weiss leaned towards the Martian.

“Yes, but I was the only survivor.” J’onn grew silent once more, still staring at the Earth. “I was and am the last of my kind. There are no more Martians on Earth nor any other planet. But, the Imperium was still there, and I vowed that no other planet would suffer what happened to my own. I sealed them away and placed myself into hibernation, and for the next five hundred years we were undisturbed.”

“What happened after that?” Jaune asked, enraptured by the tale.

“Five years ago, two NASA astronauts, led by Captain John Allen Carter, landed on Mars. They were the first living beings to step on the planet in centuries, and they began to explore. All they found was the dust of a long dead planet… and the tomb I sealed the Imperium in. One that they accidentally opened.

“No…” Ruby gasped. “The astronauts… Did they…?”

“The Imperium killed them both instantly, only to then use the shapeshifting abilities they stole from my people to mask one of them as Captain Carter. They then turned their sights on Earth. They spent the next two years infiltrating the planet, inserting spies into key areas while working to sabotage Earth’s defenses. These efforts culminated with the disassembly of Earth’s nuclear arsenal. I myself awoke during this time and attempted to warn the humans of the danger lurking among them, but the Imperium captured me and placed me under containment.”

“Why didn’t they just kill you?” Blake pointed out.

“If I had to guess, simple cruelty. Perhaps revenge for their imprisonment. For months, they tortured me. Tried to get me to break. But I didn’t, and as my strength slowly returned, I began reaching out across the planet for allies. I telepathically contacted Superman, Wonder Woman, the Green Lantern John Stewart, Hawkgirl, and the Flash.”

“What about Batman?”

“He followed Superman.”

“Ah.” Somehow, despite not knowing him for more than a week, that seemed to fit what they knew about the Dark Knight.

“Together, we fought against the Imperium, destroying their war machines and halting their conquest of the planet. They attempted to flee, but a traitor from their own ranks, one that had grown disgusted with her people’s barbaric cruelty, sabotaged their escape which allowed us to destroy them once and for all. At that very moment, my people were avenged, and the Earth was saved.”

“Wow…” Ruby spoke quietly. “And…you all made the Justice League afterwards?”

“Yes. Before the invasion, Superman thought that he could defend the world on his own. The invasion proved him wrong, and afterwards he invited the six of us to form the Justice League, and although Batman chose not to be an official member—”

“Of course.”

“—he has been with us ever since. Since that day, we stood watch over the planet, both from threats borne from Earth and from beyond. After Hawkgirl’s people, the Thanargarians, invaded two years ago, we’ve expanded the Justice League to its current size, and we’ve been growing ever since.”

“That’s…amazing,” Jaune said as he looked at Earth and J’onn. “Why did you tell us this?”

“Because you are all hurting.” J’onn turned back to the Huntsmen, who were all staring at him. “It is not hard to see that you are all in pain. There is no shame in that. I just wanted to let you know that you are not alone. Others have gone through what you have. The loss of families, homes, and loved ones.”

He turned to leave, stopping at the doorway. “It’s getting late, and you’ve all had a long day. I recommend getting some rest.” He began to walk away again.

“Wait,” Ruby spoke up, and at once J’onn stopped in his tracks. “Thank you. I’m… I’m sorry about what happened to your people and your family. I would have loved to have met them.”

“Thank you.” J’onn nodded. At that, he closed the door and walked away, leaving RWBY and JNPR to ruminate among themselves.

* * *

 

The next morning, after eating a breakfast of pancakes, sausages, and eggs, RWBY and JNPR found themselves at the Teleporter Bay once more. They wouldn’t lie and say that, after their experience the previous day, they weren’t nervous, but the presence of Superman along with Batman and Wonder Woman calmed them. J’onn’s words from the previous night still echoed in their minds, and they wondered how to process it.

“All systems green,” Mr. Terrific declared from the control board. “Destination: Fortress of Solitude, Antarctic tundra.”

“Wait, we’re going to Antarctica!?” Blake suddenly shouted.

“So _that’s_ why you made us wear these heavy clothes,” Yang realized. “I thought you just wanted me to look like a penguin.” The League members chuckled while Batman remained silent.

“Quick question, how come only Batman is wearing appropriate clothes?” Jaune pointed out. Indeed, Superman was still wearing his red and blue suit and Wonder Woman her Amazonian armor, while Batman was wearing what he called his XE Suit. It certainly looked like it could survive extremely cold temperatures.

“Superman’s a Kryptonian and Diana’s a demi-god. The sub-zero temperatures in Antarctica won’t affect them,” Batman clarified, causing the teenagers to look at Diana in surprise.

“You’re a god?” Yang asked with a raised eyebrow, not quite believing it. Diana chuckled.

“I am the daughter of Zeus, Olympian God of the Sky and Queen Hippolyta of the Amazons.” She smiled warmly while the others looked at her with disbelief.

“So, what you’re saying is, you’re divine royalty?” Yang’s smirk was audible, and Superman let out a quick laugh before stopping himself.

“Yes, I suppose I am,” Diana agreed with a laugh.

“I’m firing up the teleporter. See you all in a few hours,” Mr. Terrific declared as the teleporter booted up. The teenagers braced themselves as the light shone around them. They felt the pull as the teleporter transported them. One moment, they were in a temperature-controlled metal room. The next, they were standing in front of a large crystal pyramid with a golden door, surrounded by ice and snow.

“Gods, it’s cold!” Blake yelled as she hugged herself tightly, her teeth beginning to chatter. The other Huntsmen were shivering and holding themselves tightly as well, wisps of icy breath coming out of their mouths as their cheeks turned red.

“Heh, you guys would have never survived Atlas,” Weiss declared as she looked haughtily at the others. She, too, was cold and her skin was beginning to redden, but unlike the others, she was more used to the cold environment and had her stubborn pride to keep herself warm.

“Wh…where are we?” Jaune asked through chattering teeth.

“This,” Superman declared as he walked to the door, “is the Fortress of Solitude.”

The doors opened and let the warm air of the Fortress escape out of its walls. Almost as soon as the warm air hit their bodies did the teenagers all sprint inside. Superman and Diana chuckled at their reaction while Batman merely walked after them. The two followed him in and the doors closed behind them with a loud clang.

“Didn’t take them long to get in,” Superman noted.

“It’s negative fifty-seven degrees Celsius, Clark. Of course, they ran inside,” Batman dryly remarked, making Diana chuckle. The trinity of heroes continued deeper into the Fortress, finally coming across a pile of discarded winter clothes. The teenagers were nowhere to be seen, but none of them were worried. In the distance, they could hear running feet and followed them.

“Somehow, I figured they’d come here,” Diana declared as they found themselves in the preservation hall. RWBY and JNPR were all pressed up against the glass enclosures, each looking at the myriad array of fantastical creatures. Six-legged lizards, the size of small dogs, scuttled across tall tree branches. Children-sized golden birds hefted giant worms as they soared through the air, only to land next to large nests and feed the worms to their waiting children. A large rhino-like creature with a spiked crest grazed in a large grassland, while a pack of wolf-like creatures prowled a nearby forest.

“They’re all so pretty,” Nora gasped at the creatures. “How’d you come across them?”

“Every one of these creatures were found injured from alien words,” Superman began to explain as he stood in front of a glass enclosure. “They wouldn’t have survived on their own, so I bring them here, rehabilitate them and, when they’re ready, bring them back home. Some, however, are unable to re-adapt to the wild, so they end up staying here.”

“Hmm,” Yang hummed to herself as she watched a mother bird feed her young. “I take it these are the ones that couldn’t survive in the wild, even after you healed them.”

“Yes,” Superman answered. His face was calm, but his eyes held a sadness to them that Yang couldn’t quite describe. “It breaks my heart, but I try to keep them happy.”

“At least you don’t force them into glass walls,” she muttered, and Superman sighed. He figured this would come up. There was no malice in her words, but he could tell she was still hurting. He moved to speak up, only for a high-pitched squeal to catch everyone’s attention.

“DOGGY!” Ruby squealed as a pure white dog wearing a red collar and cape ran into the hallway. Ruby ran towards the dog, who happily leapt into her arms and began to fervently lick her face. “Ooh, stop it! Stop it! Hahaha!”

“Ooh, who’s a good doggy? Who’s a good doggy?” Weiss coddled the canine as he turned his attention to the heiress. He got off Ruby and rolled over on his back, allowing Ruby, Weiss, and Nora to start giving him belly rubs. “Oh, we’re going to be the best of friends! Yes, we are! Yes, we are!”

“You have a dog?” Jaune asked as he and the others watched their friends play with the dog.

“I do,” Superman replied with a toothy smile. “His name’s Krypto.”

“Krypto! Oh, that’s a great name!” Ruby continued to rub Krypto’s belly.

“Just keep him away from me,” Blake muttered from high above. Everyone looked up to see she was currently perched on an archway, warily watching Krypto with suspicion.

“Impressive,” Batman idly noted. “You made too much noise, though, and you didn’t choose the best spot to hide. Too much light.”

“Do you really think that-?” Blake was interrupted by Krypto’s bark. She looked down to see the dog staring up at her, sitting down and wagging his tail. “No, I don’t want to play with you.”

Krypto barked again, and Blake shook her head. “I said no. I’m not going down there.” Krypto whined and stopped wagging his tail, causing Ruby to gasp and cutely glare at the Faunus.

“Blake, how could you?” she demanded, causing the girl to sigh.

“Ruby, no offense to Krypto, but I…am much more comfortable staying up here.” Krypto whined, and Blake remained unmoved.

“Should we tell her?” Diana asked, to which Superman merely shook his head.

“No,” Superman said with a smile.

Krypto whined once more and barked loudly, causing Blake to scoff. “No, Krypto. I’m not going down there.”

Krypto whined then scrunched his face. He suddenly got to his feet and crouched down, causing Blake to stare blankly at the canine.

“Seriously? You can’t jump up—” Blake was interrupted by Krypto leaping into the air. That leap quickly turned into flight, and Krypto flew straight towards an astonished Blake.

“HE CAN FLY!” Ruby shrieked as Krypto soared towards a frozen Blake. Yang’s hysterical laughter drowned out the others', and a victorious Krypto looked straight into Blake’s eyes. He barked, the force of which rippled the air slightly, then licked Blake’s face. When Blake vanished on contact, Krypto looked confused for a moment, only to see the Faunus nimbly scaling down the walls. He scrunched his face then zoomed in front of her, becoming a white blur that reappeared right in front of her. Startled, Blake fell onto the ground, and was helpless to stop Krypto from triumphantly licking her in the face.

“I think he likes you!” Jaune laughed as Krypto laid across Blake’s lap, making her his bed.

“I… what is…” Blake stammered as she began petting the creature, if only to placate him. He appeared to enjoy the attention, as he began wagging his tail. Superman smiled at the scene before deciding that he’d had his fun.

“Krypto, that’s enough. Get off Blake,” Superman scolded his dog. He barked and hopped off the catgirl’s lap then flew to his master. “Sorry about that. Krypto’s very affectionate, and a good judge of character. He took to you all very well.”

“Flying…dog…too fast…” Blake muttered with wide eyes, causing Yang to laugh harder. She then looked at the smiling face of Diana, Superman, and the faintest evidence of a smirk on Batman’s face, then her eyes narrowed. “You knew…”

“That was great!” Yang laughed, to which Krypto barked in appreciation. “What is he, anyway? Was that his Semblance?”

“Semblance?” Superman raised an eyebrow, confusing the others.

“Yeah, his Semblance,” Yang clarified, to which the heroes remained silent. “You know, the thing that comes from Aura? Special powers beyond what Aura gives everyone? Yours is the most varied I’ve ever seen, by the way. We saw the videos from Metropolis.”

“Oh, I see.” Superman nodded his head. “You mean your people’s metagene powers. You call them Semblances?”

“Meta-what now?” Yang asked, clearly confused. The others were just as confused as she was, causing all of them to look at the superheroes, their eyes asking questions and demanding answers. Superman and his companions looked at each other for a moment then back to the teenagers.

“Before we continue, I think it would be best if we discuss what each of us are talking about,” Diana suggested. “Let’s start with you, Yang. Can you explain to us what “Aura” and “Semblances” are to you?”

“Um…okay,” Yang said, shuffling on her feet. “Everything I learned was from my dad and uncle, but… Aura is the physical manifestation of our soul.”

“Your soul?” Batman asked. When Yang nodded, Batman tapped a few buttons on his gauntlets, creating a holographic image that he shone on a nearby wall. “Then that must have been the energy field we detected around your bodies. Tell me, does it increase your strength, durability, reaction time and healing?”

“Um, yeah,” Jaune spoke up. “It’s…kind of like a force field. If it’s up, we’ll feel the pain but we won’t actually get hurt. I have to concentrate, though, otherwise things go through.”

“With practice, a person can actually keep it up all the time,” Weiss clarified. Batman hummed to himself and typed into a holographic display.

“And Semblances?” Batman asked. Once again, RWBY and JNPR looked among themselves. They were beginning to think that something was up, something more than just different terminology, but pressed on.

“Semblances are special powers that are fueled by Aura. Each one is unique to the individual and is shaped by who they are. With practice, a Semblance can be improved and expanded in ways that might not have seemed possible when they were first discovered.” Pyrrha began to point at herself. “My Semblance is Polarity. I can manipulate magnetic fields around metals. At first, the metals needed to be magnetic for me to manipulate them, but with practice I was able to expand my reach to all metals.”

Yang spoke up. “I can absorb the damage I take and use it to boost my strength in temporary bursts. Also makes my hair catch fire, but that’s just an awesome side effect. Ruby can turn herself into a cloud of rose petals to move around quickly, Weiss can create glyphs with which she can do… a lot of things, and Nora can absorb electricity to make her stronger, kind of like me.”

“Green Arrow described seeing that,” Batman pointed out. “Said you ripped a power conduit out of the wall.”

“Heheh, yeah I did,” Nora nervously laughed. “Anyway, Ren can suppress people’s emotions, practically making them invisible to the Grimm, and while Jaune hasn’t found his yet, I know it’ll be awesome!”

“Thanks, Nora,” Jaune said while rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. “So, what about you guys? What are your Semblances?”

The trio of superheroes all looked at each other then back at the Huntsmen-in-Training. Their silence confused the teenagers, but when Batman began to speak, they all focused their attention on him.

“None of us here have that,” Batman revealed, shocking RWBY and JNPR into silence.

“…Come again?” Yang whispered.

“Superman and Wonder Woman’s abilities do not come from this “Aura” or “Semblances”. They are a physical result of their Kryptonian and divine physiologies, and not a naturally occurring soul magic.”

“But…that’s impossible. Everyone has an Aura,” Ruby stammered out.

“What do you mean, everyone?” Superman narrowed his eyes, and Ruby threw her arms around.

“Everyone! People, animals. Heck, even plants! The only things that don’t have souls are the Grimm!”

“Fascinating,” Batman muttered. “You’re telling me that every single Remnantian has an active metagene?”

“That’s the second time you mentioned that,” Yang pointed out. “What the hell is a metagene?”

“Allow me to explain,” Superman stated and walked forward. “On Earth, most people do not have any powers what so ever. They are just normal human beings. They can walk, run, punch, and do things that normal people do. Certain individuals, however, are born with a particular gene that we call the metagene.” Batman brought up a holographic display of a double-helix. Strands of DNA and RNA were highlighted, with one strand being singled out and brought into focus.

“This is the metagene,” Batman declared. “All individuals who have a metagene initially have them in a dormant state. Most people never activate them. But, sometimes, a high stress situation will occur that would result in an individual’s death. Explosions, lightning strikes, radiation, extreme exposure to the elements, and many more. In these situations where death is imminent, a dormant metagene may activate, causing the individual to undergo spontaneous adaptative mutation and give the them the powers he or she needs to survive. Sometimes it’s as simple as being able to survive extreme temperatures, others as complex as the ability to turn into any animal on Earth. The people who have these powers from an active metagene are called Metas.”

“Okay, that…kind of makes sense.” Yang was still trying to wrap her head around the concept of a civilization that didn’t know what Aura was, but at the very least she could understand the gist of what they were saying. “But, how does that apply to us? You said that we all had an active metagene. What does that mean?”

“It means that, under our present understanding, you are all Metas,” Superman declared. “We’d have to do more tests, with your permission of course, but it’s possible that your people’s uniform metagene gave you natural access to the power of your soul. It physically manifests itself on the outside, making you even stronger.”

“What about Semblances, then?” Weiss asked, focusing intensely on the people in front of her. All of this fascinated her, and she was already jotting down notes on a pad.

“Again, we’d have to do more tests, but if I had to guess, souls are inherently complex. It’s possible that by allowing your soul to physically manifest itself on the outside, it further developed into your Semblances. If you’d like, we can bring in someone with more experience in this area to help.”

“Please,” Weiss quickly agreed with a smile and nod. “This is fascinating! I’d love to learn more!”

“Hold on, now,” Jaune stated. “I’m still confused. You said that Superman and Wonder Woman’s powers are from them being a Kryptonian and her divine heritage. Are you saying that…”

“When I said I was the daughter of Zeus, I meant it,” Diana said with a smile. The others all stared at her, not sure of what to do.

“… So, do you want us to bow in worship, or…?” Yang nervously muttered, causing Diana to laugh.

“No, not all.” She laughed more. “My powers may come from the gods, but I am not a god myself. I am a demi-god, born between the love of a mortal and a god.”

“Ah. Well, that’s… kind of a relief...” Diana looked at Yang, slightly puzzled at her reaction. Seeing this, Blake spoke up, still trying to wrap her head around what she was learning.

“Back home… there are no gods. I mean, some worship the Two Brothers still, but most simply believe that they either never existed or have long since abandoned us. To meet a person who is actually the _daughter_ of a god is… a little hard to comprehend.” She nervously chuckled.

“What about you, Batman? You didn’t mention your powers,” Weiss brought up and was met by a blank stare from the detective.

“I don’t have powers.”

“What? You have _none_?” Batman shook his head. “So, no shadow powers?”

“I’m trained to hide in them.”

“Super strength?”

“No.”

“You can…turn into a bat?”

“No.”

“Flight?”

“In a plane.”

"You have to at least have echolocation or something from your Faunus traits, right?

"I’m assuming that’s what Blake is. And no."

“… You’re not just a guy in a bat costume, are you?” Batman smirked at Weiss’ question, and she threw her hands in the air in exasperation.

“You mentioned Kryptonian,” Ruby spoke up. “What did you mean by that? Are you…not from Earth?”

Superman nodded calmly. “No, I am not. That is why I brought you here. I wanted to show you something else.”

Superman began to walk down the hallway, Krypto by his side the whole time. Batman and Wonder Woman looked at RWBY and JNPR expectantly, and after a moment, they all followed the Man of Steel. Silently, they walked through the Fortress, eventually coming across a grand room. Towering above them all was a giant steel statue of a man and woman holding a planet above their heads.

“Wow, that’s…beautiful,” Weiss gasped. “You can see the care and detail, even from here. They look like they’re alive. Whoever made this was incredibly skilled.”

“Thank you. I’m glad to hear that, if my other job falls through, I can always fall back on being a sculptor.” Superman chuckled.

“Who are they?” Jaune asked as he gazed up at the statue.

“Those…are my parents. Jor-El and Lara-El,” Superman revealed, his face and voice going solemn. “They’re the ones who sent me to Earth when I was only a few days old.”

“What?” Yang looked at Superman. “Why would they do that?”

“It was the only way to save me,” Superman declared and pointed to the planet above them. “That planet that they’re holding? That’s Krypton, the place where I was born. They named me Kal-El, Star Child.”

He turned back to face them, sadness in his eyes. “From the records my father gave me, Krypton was a powerful civilization, thousands of years more advanced than Earth. They had achieved wonders. Interdimensional travel, cloning, immortality, anything you can imagine, they had. But, they were also highly restrictive. Everyone was born into a role they were designed for by birth. Soldiers were born to be soldiers, scientists born to be scientists, and so on. Slowly, Krypton began to rot from within, its society becoming a shadow of its former glory.”

“So, your parents wanted you to escape that?” Ruby guessed, but Superman shook his head.

“Not exactly. I was the first natural birth on Krypton in over six-hundred years, and had I stayed, it is undoubtable that Krypton would have hunted me down and killed my parents for heresy. But, they never got the chance.”

“What do you mean?” Ruby asked, a pit forming in her stomach.

Superman looked back up to the sculpted planet and sighed. “Centuries before I was born, Krypton was beginning to run out of resources. Energy, metals, everything that their advanced civilization needed to survive. The colonies of Kandor and Argo simply couldn’t keep up with demand, and Krypton was on the verge of societal collapse. To avert civil war, the Science Council authorized the exploitation of the planet’s core.”

Weiss looked increasingly alarmed. “They messed with their _core_? Why would they think that was a good idea?”

“At the time, no one thought anything of it. No negative side effects were recorded, so people thought they could continue to get away with it. My father, however, due to his status as chief scientist of Krypton, discovered that the core’s exploitation was weakening it severely. After centuries of exploitation, it was on the verge of unavoidable collapse, and when it did, all of Krypton would be destroyed.”

RWBY and JNPR gasped. “But, surely they would have stopped at that point? I mean, the evidence was clear, right?” Yang pleaded, but her heart sank when Superman shook his head mournfully.

“The Council didn’t believe him. He pleaded with them to stop and to order a mass evacuation of the planet, but they refused. They said the evidence wasn’t conclusive, that it would be too expensive and impractical to evacuate or stop. They rejected his pleas and ideas on how to save them from extinction, and sealed my planet’s fate.”

Superman grew silent and looked at them again. “One person did believe my father. The head of Krypton’s military, General Dru-Zod, had maintained a friendship and correspondence with my father for years. They worked together to stop a coup from the previous head of the military, General Jax-Ur and his lieutenant, Mala, an effort that sparked a deep friendship and respect between them. So, when my father declared that Krypton was about to undergo a core collapse, Zod believed him and they worked together to try and find a way to save our people.”

“He sounds like a good man,” Weiss declared, only to be cut off by a glare.

“He was _not_. Zod turned out to be a power hungry and genocidal madman. When the Council refused to do anything, he launched a coup of his own. Had he won, he would have started by wiping out entire bloodlines that he blamed for Krypton’s destruction. My father opposed this, and they fought against each other. In the end, Zod killed my father, but before he could get to me, my parents launched me into space.”

He looked at the far end of the room. Hanging in mid-air was a small spacecraft, a pointed rocket with a blue body and red wings. Gold tipped the wings, and a small glass pod laid in the center.

“Is that…?” Jaune pointed at the spacecraft, and Superman nodded.

“Yes, that is the craft that brought me to Earth. It landed in Kansas about thirty-years ago. My parents found me and raised me as their own.” Superman laughed at the warm memories then turned serious once more. “As for Krypton, all I know was that Zod failed in his coup and was imprisoned in the Phantom Zone, along with his surviving supporters. A few days later, my father was proven correct, and Krypton’s core collapsed.”

Superman looked down at his feet. Sadness filled his eyes, but he remained strong. Seeing his master’s discomfort, Krypto whined and moved his head under Superman’s hand, and with a smile Superman began to pet his head.

“I found Krypto about two years ago. His rocket was flying aimlessly through space, and I happened to come across him while flying near Jupiter,” he began to explain. “He used to be my family’s pet, and when my parents were designing the rocket to ferry me to safety, they tested the first prototype on him. They thought they lost him, but as it turned out the phantom drive merely acted slower than anticipated.”

Superman grew silent once more as he continued to pet Krypto’s head. “Krypto and I…we’re the last sons of Krypton. I’ve tried to find others, hoping that someone else made it… But I haven’t found any.”

Everyone was silent as Superman finished speaking, the heaviness of his words hanging over everyone like an axe. No one quite knew what to do. Then, without warning, Ruby burst into petals and hugged Superman tightly, surprising him slightly. He then smiled, then returned it. After a few moments, Ruby released her hold and backed away, an embarrassed blush on her face.

“Sorry. You, uh... You looked like you needed a hug,” she said with a small laugh. Superman chuckled as did the others, and he rubbed her head.

“Thank you, Ruby.” His voice was sincere, bringing a smile to Ruby’s face. Then, she turned serious and looked back at her friends. A silent conversation ensued between them and ended with Yang nodding her head in approval. The others followed, and Ruby replied with a nod back.

“Um, Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman,” she nervously got out and tapped her fingers together. “Would you… would you like to talk about Remnant?”

The heroes looked at each other for a split moment before smiling.

“We would love to.”

[~][~]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, everyone! Here's the next chapter of Hunters of Justice. This one focused on both the Justice League and RWBY/JNPR in equal measure. Most of the story will be like this, as both sides of the crossover will be treated equally. As you can see, a terrible, terrible thing has happened to RWBY/JNPR. The beginning of this story, while starting in the middle of Volume 3, turned out to be so much worse in a lot of ways. After all, losing a planet and 99% of its population in just two days is a lot worse then simply losing a school and a couple thousand people. With them being on a brand new world, they have to wrestle with the possibility that they are the last of their kind.
> 
> Yet, beyond all that, several things are still in their favor. For one, both teams are fully intact and together. Adam never cut off Yang's arm, causing Blake to run. Pyrrha didn't kiss Jaune before rocketing him away in a locker and proceeding to die not five minutes later while Jaune desperately tried to get someone to help her. Penny didn't die by Pyrrha's hands in front of Ruby. The sources of much of their trauma in Vol 4 to 6 didn't happen, instead being replaced by brand new ones. That was deliberate. 
> 
> At the same time, both teams landed in perhaps the hands of the single group of individuals who can wholeheartedly say that they understand exactly what they went through and are in the greatest ability to help them. That's why we had them learn of Martian Manhunter and Superman's backstories. They know very intimately what its like to have their home planet be destroyed or a people wiped out; in Superman's case, both. Both teams are in good hands, and all of them will be working to help them move on from their trauma.
> 
> Now, onto the 'meta-gene being responsible for the RWBY cast's Aura', that was done because, for one, when this chapter was first written we had not learned about the Brothers. Given how its implied Aura is the remnants of the magic people used to have, we didn't know about that. At the same time, the major reason why we went with it is because we wanted to unequivocally state that the DC characters will not be getting their Auras unlocked, that its a uniquely Remnantian thing. Our thought process was that the DC non-powered characters didn't need the addition of superpowers as giving them would go against those heroes' characters and what makes them interesting. Take Batman, for instance. He's much more interesting being a non-powered human who still fights alongside physical gods. Giving him powers would take that away. Plus, the idea of a superpowered Batman is terrifying and overpowered.
> 
> Now, in case there is any confusion, allow me to explain the mechanics of the Earth vs Remnant meta-gene. Essentially, all Remnantians (human, Faunus, or otherwise) have a latent meta-gene that can be activated either through a ritual (like what Pyrrha did for Jaune) or through stress. This is in contrast to the situation for Earth humans, when only certain individuals even have the gene. However, the Remnantian meta-gene is only Aura generation, any Semblance is a unique output of the individual's aura, while the Earth meta-gene is a lot more varied. As such, while the Remnantians as a whole are much more widespread in terms of powers, they're roughly on the same playing field while the Earth meta-gene can get a person to a much more varied low or high. Think of Remnant as a flat plain that is pretty high up in elevation while Earth is a valley whose lowest point is far below the plain but the mountain tops are much higher.
> 
> Please let us know what you think, and we hope you enjoy!


	4. Adjustment Phase

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> RWBY and JNPR continue to adapt to life in the Watchtower while preparing for the next segment of their lives as they prepare to join Earth's defenders, only for dark forces to make their move.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 4: Adjustment Phase **

* * *

 

_One Week Prior, Vale, Remnant_

“ _And victory goes to Penny and Ciel of Atlas!_ ” the voice of Dr. Oobleck announced over the Vytal Stadium speakers. Immediately, roars of excitement and approval filled the air as Penny placed her fist into her palm and bowed.

“Thank you for a wonderful time!” she earnestly declared with a smile before turning around, not noticing the hand of a prone Russel Thrush feebly reaching out to her before being knocked out by a falling rock. The cheering was briefly replaced by quaint laughter, but it soon began to die down as the stadium began to shift into the next configuration.

“Jaune, you aren’t still mad about the team moves, are you?” Pyrrha asked to a clearly irritated Jaune.

“No,” he mumbled while taking a sip from his grape soda.

“Oh, he’s totally mad,” Nora countered, her mouth full of half chewed pretzel.

“No, I am not,” Jaune stewed as he grabbed a handful of popcorn while his team sighed and Pyrrha patted his shoulder apologetically. After a moment, he sighed and hung his head. “It’s just… I went over those moves with you guys like ten times, and none of you remembered…”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay, Pyrrha. Well, at the very least now we know that simply copying RWBY won’t really work out for us.”

“I wouldn’t say that…”

“What’s Arkos?” Jaune cut with a lidded stare.

“Uh…” Pyrrha’s face went blank as she wracked her brain, trying to remember their move. Jaune merely sighed and turned his attention back to the arena.

He allowed himself to settle into the festivities the Vytal Tournament offered. Even in its second week, the energy was still just as lively as the opening ceremonies. The full team round only ended the day before, which was when his team and team RWBY were finally able to participate in the competition. RWBY won their match spectacularly, with all four girls showing off their impressive skillsets, weapons, and Semblances. His team won theirs as well, although Jaune did make a fool out of himself in the process. Then again, that wasn’t anything new. Even though he had improved tremendously under Pyrrha’s tutelage, to the point where he actually stood a chance against Cardin, he still wasn’t at everyone else’s level.

“You know,” Nora began, “while it stinks that it took us so long to actually compete, at least we get to fight again so quickly. I mean, we’re up right after RWBY.”

“Going up against Sun and Neptune, if I remember correctly,” Ren pointed out. “I have every confidence that you and Pyrrha will succeed.”

“Well, duh. Obviously,” Nora said as though their victory was a forgone conclusion. Jaune wished he had Nora’s confidence sometimes.

“You guys at least remember the strategy for them, right?” he asked the female half of his team, to which Pyrrha resolutely nodded.

“We should split them up right away, with me keeping Sun off of Nora so he can’t overwhelm her up close with those gun-chucks Ruby told us about, leaving Nora free to deal with Neptune.”

“Yeah, the guy with the _lightning_ gun,” the Valkyrie in question snickered evilly while picking at her teeth. “Poor pool noodle.”

“Everyone’s seen your Semblance by now, Nora,” her partner warned. “He’s probably not going to use any electricity against you.”

“Then I’ll just have to hit him a couple of times instead of once,” the ginger dismissively replied before getting more serious, “and like Jaune said, that’ll still lock out half of his options. Unless they pull a serious surprise outta their butts, we’ll be fine.”

“You guys will be spectacular out there. You always are,” Jaune stated with a smile. Pyrrha blushed slightly while Nora beamed. Something about the sly grin she gave Ren was odd to the blond boy, but he paid it no heed. A thought then came to his mind and he pursed his lips and hummed.

“You know, Ruby’s birthday is coming up in little over a month,” he stated while tapping his chin. The others looked at him then nodded. “We should probably figure out something for her. I don’t think she would do what we did for Pyrrha’s birthday.”

“Yeah, that was very…lowkey.” Nora nodded while Pyrrha sighed contently. Nora’s eyes then widened as the stadium lights began to shift, and she excitedly bounced in her seat. “Ooh, it’s starting!”

Jaune turned his attention back towards the arena. Sure enough, Weiss and Yang were already on the arena floor. Over the crowd, he heard some footsteps and saw Ruby walking up to her seat next to Blake. He smiled at her, and she smiled back.

“Well, now it’s our turn!” Jaune barely heard Yang say. He was happy that he had front row tickets, otherwise he wouldn’t have been able to hear her at all.

“Just remember to keep proper form,” Weiss chided, causing Yang to chuckle.

“ _Alright_.” Yang’s tone then shifted from jovial to serious as she began to stretch. “You’re from Atlas. What could we expect?”

“Well, seeing as their Kingdom, academy, and armed forces are all merged as one, I think we can expect strict, militant fighters with advanced technology and carefully rehearsed strategies.”

Almost as if Weiss’ declaration was a direct challenge to the Brothers themselves, a man and woman soon emerged from the opposite tunnel. One was dressed like a jazz singer, complete with sunglasses and a fedora, while the cat Faunus girl next to him was multi-colored in nearly every aspect of her body, from her pigtails to her (temporary?) tattoos. She was also riding around on roller skates, and for the life of him, Jaune had no idea how she was supposed to be able to fight in those, though the way she zoomed around the white and yellow duo while trailing a literal _rainbow_ made him wonder.

“Ooh, this is going to be _good_.” Nora shook in her seat while the others merely stared in confusion.

“Have to admit, did not think _that_ ,” Jaune pointed to the colorful Atlesian students who were now taunting Weiss and Yang, “would come out of Atlas.”

“Same here,” Pyrrha agreed with him. “Was expecting more of… Weiss.”

“Yeah…”

“Kick their butts, Yang!” Ruby shouted while she and Blake waved tiny flags with their team names embroidered on them. Jaune then turned his attention back onto the arena as the images on the jumbotron began to rotate and select their battlefield.

“You should try rollerblading sometime!” he heard the Faunus girl say to Yang tauntingly, and judging by the look on Yang’s face, she was succeeding. “It’s _super_ fun! It’d probably take you a while, though, since you’re so… you know, _top-heavy_.”

“ _Excuse me!?_ ” Yang shouted with red eyes while Ruby rolled her eyes.

“Oh, here we g—” Whatever Ruby was about to say was interrupted by every single light in the stadium suddenly shutting off.

“What the hell?” Jaune looked around the stadium in confusion, as did everyone else. Gasps and shouts began circulating around the stadium as everyone shuffled among themselves. He got to his feet to get a better look, his eyes narrowed as he tried to piece together exactly what had happened. “Power failure?”

“I guess.” Blake sounded unsure as she looked at Yang and Weiss in worry. He could see how the combatants were just as confused as they were, and at the same time slightly disappointed. Yang looked like she really wanted to pay the Faunus girl back for her top-heavy crack.

“CCT’s out,” Ren revealed, holding his scroll for all to see. Sure enough, the bars that indicated CCT connectivity were completely empty, revealing only a red X in their place. Instinctively they all looked at the CCT tower in the middle of Beacon and they saw nothing wrong with it. Their alarm slowly began to rise.

“Something’s wrong,” Ruby said, her eyes narrowed at the intact tower. She pulled out her scroll and checked to see if the connection to the rocket locker was still operational. To her and the other’s relief, they were, as those were radio based. Ruby turned to the others, only for a shadow to slowly envelop the arena, blocking out the sun. Blake turned to face the source of the shadow, only for her amber eyes to go wide.

“Oh my god…”

“What?” Jaune asked as he, too, turned to the source. Any other question he had died on his lips as the source of the shadow emerged from the clouds. At once, he could feel the stadium go dead quiet as everyone stared at the large, skull-shaped vessel. It was metallic purple, with metal tentacles sprouting from the bottom, and a gold covering over the eyes.

“That’s…” Pyrrha gulped, her eyes wide. “That’s not Atlesian…”

“Then what is it?” Ruby asked. Quickly, Jaune shifted his eyes towards the arena and saw Weiss, Yang, and the two Atlesian fighters staring numbly at the vessel above them, all conflict between them forgotten. It was then that the jumbotron sprang back to life, revealing the full body of a green-skinned man. At once Jaune realized he was not human nor Faunus. He was clad in metallic purple, similar to the ship he was undoubtedly inside. Three purple lights marked his bald forehead, and his eyes glowed in a similar purple hue. They looked mechanical, lifeless. It was then that Jaune realized that this man was staring down at them with cold-hearted indifference, as though they were ants, and his heartbeat quickened. A quick look at his scroll revealed the video to be transmitting through it as well.

‘ _Did he… take control of the CCT?_ ’ Jaune thought to himself as his grip on the device tightened, his knuckles turning white.

“ _People of Remnant,_ ” he suddenly began to speak through every speaker around them, his voice and tone emotionless and nearing robotic, yet also filled with power, “ _I… am Brainiac. Do not be alarmed, for I offer salvation. Your people, your cultures, your knowledge will be preserved for eternity, spared from the ravages of time. Do not resist._ ”

As soon as the man now identified as Brainiac finished speaking, the video transmission cut. The arena’s inhabitants simply stared at the vessel in awe and fear, their questions obvious on their faces and bodies.

“What… What did he mean by that?” Ruby quietly asked as Yang and Weiss ran over to them. He and the others then jumped down into the arena to join them as they all stared with wide eyes. He could hear the roar of jets and Atlesian battleships race towards the vessel, beginning to encircle it, but something told Jaune that their efforts may very well be in vain. At the very least, the vessel did cease its descent.

“Nothing good,” Ren said, already pressing the button for his rocket locker. The others followed him, and eight lockers then crashed onto the ground in front of them. Around him, he could hear other teams do the same, and the sounds of safeties being clicked off and rounds being chambered echoed around him. As Jaune unsheathed his Crocea Mors and expanded his shield, the jumbotron suddenly shifted to an image of Shade Academy, taken from a news camera from the outskirts of the city.

“ _This is Jasmine Gold, reporting to you live from the outskirts of Shade Academy!_ ” a purple haired wolf Faunus woman spoke into a microphone. “ _The ship has just stopped over the CCT tower. The Headmaster is urging calm to all citizens as communication attempts with this Brainiac are currently underway. My sources tell me that, as of now, no communication efforts have been—”_

A bright light soon shone from the base of the skull ship over Shade Academy, catching the reporter’s attention.

“ _A bright light has just erupted from the ship!_ ” she diligently continued to report, all the while Jaune was internally begging her to flee. He didn’t know what that light was, but it wasn’t anything good. “ _Nick, are you getting this?_ ”

“ _Yes! Jazz, maybe we should get out of here?_ ” a male voice timidly asked, his fear palpable. Jaune didn’t blame him.

“ _No way!_ ” Jasmine countered, her excited tone contrasting heavily with her cameraman’s. “ _This is the story of the century, and I’m not just…”_

It was at that moment that the light exploded. From the base of the ship, a white column shot into the ground and enveloped Shade Academy. It expanded like a balloon, consuming everything it touched.

“ _Oh my god…_ ” they heard Jasmine say before the light washed over her as well and the CCT broadcast gave out.

There was a moment of silent horror that felt like it lasted a lifetime. In his mind’s eye, Jaune could see where Shade Academy once stood that was now undoubtably a smoking crater. Millions of people, gone in an instant. His heart felt like a jackhammer, his hairs stood on end, his eyes became thin and narrow, his mouth became dry, and his breath quickened. He couldn’t tear his gaze from the static screen, but he could feel his friends and everyone around him were feeling the exact same thing as he was.

The silence then broke with the simultaneous sounds of millions of terrified screams and the ensuing barrage of fire upon the vessel.

* * *

 

_Present Day, Watchtower, Earth Geosynchronous Orbit_

“After nearly a day of fighting, us against the Grimm and Ironwood’s fleet against the Dragon and Brainiac’s ship, we were finally able to bring it down. That only bought us a few hours of rest. Afterwards, he started using drones to corral us deeper into the city, not that we realized that’s what he was doing at the time,” Jaune explained as he sat in the Watchtower’s boardroom alongside his friends. Behind him, a map of Remnant was displayed on a monitor, the Four Kingdoms and their territories highlighted in their respective colors.

They had managed to replace the now inert and useless Dust batteries in their scrolls with something called a lithium-ion battery. Apparently, they had to be specially manufactured by some company called Wayne Enterprises, hence why it took so long for them to be made and brought up here. From what he could tell, this Bruce Wayne guy was a big deal, judging by how many times he came across WayneTech or Wayne Enterprises logos on the equipment in the Watchtower.

Funnily enough, when Weiss first learned of them, she was ecstatic. Apparently, that technology was only theoretical back on Remnant, and to learn that lithium-ion batteries were commonplace here excited her tremendously. To him, however, he was just happy to finally have a working scroll.

Having a working set of scrolls allowed for the Justice League to finally download information about their destroyed homeworld. Between all of them, they had information about almost anything. Weiss had information about Dust and the Kingdoms, Blake’s had detailed studies on the Faunus, both biological and sociological, Ruby’s had complex forging processes and weapon schematics, something that Batman took great interest in. Not to mention all the notes on the Grimm and their texts from school. The rest was just miscellaneous information, ranging from books to videos and newspaper articles. The League took every ounce of it with the utmost care and seriousness, combing over everything as they allowed RWBY and JNPR to detail the history of their world.

 “By the end of the day, several of the people we were fighting with were either dead, missing, or even captured.”

“Captured?” Flash asked, his voice both concerned and horrified. Ruby grimly nodded.

“He was studying us. He captured humans, Faunus, people from all ages and genders. Probably just to figure them out.” Ruby took a sip of water to clear her throat. “A few of them were captured because they had some anomaly to them, like Cinder Fall. Her screams were…awful, and when I was running through Brainiac’s ship I came across her with tubes all over her body. She was still alive, but in a lot of pain.” Ruby shuddered and Yang patted her shoulder.  “I tried to get her out, but nothing I did worked before a patrol forced me to flee. I never had the chance to go back.”

They were all there when it happened. Cinder had only just begun to stop wailing about her failed plans when she, Emerald, and Mercury became surrounded. RWBY and JNPR had tried to get to them, only to be cut off by a veritable wall of drones. Then, Cinder’s eyes narrowed and she began creating glass weapons out of thin air. The way she fought was spectacular, graceful and elegant yet also brutal and unforgiving, but at the same time reminded Ruby immensely of the break in at the CCT tower just a few weeks prior. The more she fought, the more Ruby connected the dots, and by the end realized she was the very same person.

Then, Cinder’s eyes burned and she cast fire everywhere. The heat was unbearable and it melted the drones into pools of boiling liquid. Ruby and the others knew that whatever that was, it was not a Semblance or Dust. It was something else. That was when Cinder finally noticed them, and to their surprise moved to attack them, Mercury and Emerald alongside her. They even looked eager to do it. Before they could so much as lift a finger, however, more drones dropped down around them and bound Cinder with electrified cables. They then spoke, declaring her to have a magical anomaly. Ruby hadn’t thought that was even a thing. She tried to get free, to make a run for it, but in the end she was helpless to stop Brainiac’s ship from beaming her inside, leaving behind a wailing Emerald and horrified Mercury. The two then ran off before RWBY and JNPR could apprehend them, and they weren’t seen again.

“He also tried to get Penny, but we were able to stop that. That’s when we learned she was an Aura-producing robot,” Yang pointed out while Ruby looked sheepish. “Which Ruby already knew and didn’t tell us about.”

“I promised not to tell anyone,” Ruby protested.

“It’s fine. After that, the General transferred Penny off the front lines and into the reserves to discourage anymore abduction attempts. By the end of that first night, all the automated Knights and Paladins were destroyed, forcing Ironwood and the surviving leadership to conscript the students into the defense. Before, only volunteers were fighting. Lot of good it did us in the end…” Yang sighed dejectedly.

“By the end of the second day, we had lost nearly the entire city. Ammo was running dry, everyone was exhausted, and morale was resting on bedrock. Ironwood almost blew up half the city just to buy more time, only for Ruby to get captured and beamed aboard his personal ship,” Weiss stated. “Yang convinced a pilot sent to evacuate us into going after her, and in the end we managed to convince Ironwood to instead use the remaining explosives to breach the ship’s hull.”

“Which is where you found the bottled cities and what his actual goals were,” Superman finished, and the huntsmen nodded. Superman nodded back slowly. “You all did a very brave thing back there, going into his ship to try and stop him yourselves.”

“But we failed?” Nora pointed out, only to have Superman shake his head.

“You were able to save your friend from becoming a victim of Brainiac’s twisted curiosity. That’s a victory in my book,” Superman pointed out. The way he said it lifted their spirits somewhat and they couldn’t help but smile. He then turned to Flash and nodded, and the scarlet speedster nodded back and got out of his seat.

“If you don’t mind, guys, we’ll need to discuss this in private,” he told the huntsmen and huntresses. They nodded in understanding and got out of their seats and left the boardroom, the door closing behind them automatically. For a moment, the boardroom was silent, the League Founders sitting in silent contemplation. Finally, after a few moments, Flash spoke up.

“So, what do you guys make of this?” he asked. “Besides how screwed up the entire thing is.”

“First things first, we need to update the UN about Brainiac,” Superman said, his face serious. “Now that we have more concrete information about him, how he operates and the basics of his technology, they can actually start creating countermeasures.”

“I’ll start making tools to counter him,” Batman declared. “Cyborg might be able to code a virus and design a protection software for Brother Eye, so I’ll bring him in as well.”

“Please. We were looking to evaluate him for invitation anyway, so this might be a good chance for that,” Superman replied. “Diana, I need you to notify the UN. You’re the ambassador for Themyscira, so you can call together the General Assembly and notify everyone at once.”

“Of course.” Diana nodded. “I’ll also send word to my mother and Aquaman. Should Brainiac arrive, Themyscira and Atlantis will be ready for him.”

“When he arrives,” Batman corrected. “Lantern, have you received word back from the Guardians about Brainiac?”

“I did.” Green Lantern scowled. “He’s been doing this for centuries. We’ve only been able to drive him off a few times, often at great cost. But, should he arrive, we’ll have their support.”

“That’s a relief,” Hawkgirl stated. She paused then stared at the map of Remnant, studying it intently. “What about the Grimm? We don’t exactly have much on them. Neither did they, for that matter.”

“We know their weaknesses and how they operate,” Diana responded. “I’ll talk about them to the UN as well.”

“That’s all fine and well,” Flash cut in, “but that’s not the most important thing here. What are we going to do about RWBY and JNPR? I mean, we can’t just keep them up here forever,” he asked. Internally, he thought that their team names sounded really cool, but figured now was not the time to speak up about that. The other founders frowned at the question, one that had been nagging at them for some time now.

“We help them acclimate, learn how to operate in Earth society.” Batman’s suggestion was met with nods, but Superman looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

“Something tells me that you aren’t talking about finding them a place to live,” he accused. Batman nodded.

“Not exactly.” He paused and glanced at one of the pictures on the screens. It was a large emerald structure. RWBY and JNPR had described it as Beacon Academy, the greatest huntsmen academy on Remnant. It wasn’t hard to come up with what he said next.

“We should train them.” Immediately the others looked at him intensely, demanding he explain further. “They’re warriors, all of them, hailing from a minor death world that managed to survive until Brainiac’s arrival. A person who even the Green Lantern Corp. has had trouble driving off. Even then, against all odds, they managed to hold him off for two days. They’d be a powerful asset.”

“Is that really best for them, though?” Superman pointed out. He could see where Batman was going with this, and admittedly he had thought the same thing.

“Yes.” Batman nodded. “From what they’ve described, huntsmen are expected to live dangerous lives in the service of others, using their powers and strength to protect those who can’t protect themselves. Sound familiar?”

“That’s what we do,” Hawkgirl observed, her mind racing through the possibilities.

“Exactly. Look at Brainiac’s invasion. When their peers attempted to flee, they stood and fought the entire time, before their leaders forced everyone to fight. When Brainiac captured Ruby, they didn’t hesitate to launch a rescue operation to get her back, despite knowing they might not return. When they learned what Brainiac was planning to do to Vale, they tried to stop him on their own, fighting against an enemy they knew was outside their capabilities. Even if we didn’t train them, there’s not a shred of doubt in my mind that they would do so anyway.” His voice, calm as ever, contained a hint of pride in it while the others contemplated his words.

“Hmm,” Green Lantern hummed to himself. “That does sound like them. J’onn, what do you think? You were able to look into their minds.”

“Batman’s assessment is accurate,” J’onn answered. “I did not pry deeply, but I was able to see their surface thoughts. They are like us in a way. Despite what has befallen then, the pain that they are only now beginning to heal from, a desire to help people is always at the forefront of their minds. I suspected it was there before Brainiac’s invasion, and their testimony confirmed it.”

“There’s one more reason why I think we should train them,” Batman revealed. “They come from a world where everyone they fight is expected to have powers. Should they fight someone here, they may accidentally kill or cripple them. We need to train on how to hold themselves back, just for safety reasons.”

“That is true.” Flash nodded, bringing his hand to his chin. “I think you’re right, Bats.”

“I’m with Batman as well,” Diana spoke up, “but, only if they want to. I do not want to take the decision away from them on this.”

“Agreed,” Superman said as he stood up and turned to face out the window. “I say we leave it up to them. If they want to fight alongside us, we’ll help them every step of the way. If they don’t, we’ll help them settle in on Earth.”

“Sounds good to me,” Green Lantern said, nodding his head and crossing his arms. The others quickly agreed as well, and with a final nod, Superman turned back to them. The room was silent as they all stared at each other then, one by one, they all turned to look at the closed door.

“You can come out now. We know you’re there,” Superman suddenly called out, a smile on his face. With his x-ray vision, he could see the surprised faces of the Remnantians as they moved their ears away from the door. As they did, the door opened, revealing their sheepish faces to the others.

“Uh… how did you know we were still here?” Jaune asked, to which Superman smirked.

“Superhearing, and also X-ray Vision,” he casually revealed to the blank stares of the teenagers.

“… How many powers do you _have_?” Yang threw her arms up while Ruby looked at the Man of Steel in awe.

“Plenty. Remind me to go over all of it with you guys later.” His smile was then replaced by a more serious expression. “How much did you guys hear?”

The teenagers looked between themselves before Blake straightened herself. “Something about you wanting to…train us.” They went quiet as everyone stared at each other, both sides waiting for the other to make the first move. After a few moments of silence, Yang coughed into her fist and drew everyone’s eyes to her.

“So…is there a weight room in here? A track?” Yang asked and waved her hand in a circle. Her fellow huntsmen-in-training nodded and grinned, to which the League founders nodded back.

* * *

 

RWBY and JNPR followed Batman through the Watchtower with no small amount of anticipation. They wouldn’t lie and say that the thought of them continuing their jobs as huntsmen and huntresses down on Earth hadn’t crossed their minds. Sure, there weren’t any Grimm, at least not anymore, but that didn’t mean that threats didn’t exist. Just as there were superheroes, there were supervillains in turn. Assassins, terrorists, psychopaths, arms dealers, and would-be world conquerors threatened people’s lives every day, and they couldn’t let that stand.

“We’re here,” Batman announced, cutting the teens from their thoughts as they entered into a large empty dome. The walls and floor were covered in grey squares that felt metallic. Each step the group took echoed across the empty space, signaling just how large the room truly was.

“What is this place?” Ruby asked as Batman pressed a few buttons on his gauntlet.

“This,” he said as the panels began to light up, “is the Holographic Simulator Room.”

At once, the light on the panels exploded and thrust outward. Rather than appear as formless white light, however, solid images began to appear all around them. To RWBY and JNPR’s amazement, a city began to erect right in front of their eyes, complete with roads, skyscrapers, and parked cars. A faint breeze could be felt on their skin, and warmth from above told them that it was midday.

Yang whistled. “Nice,” she remarked as she touched a holographic building. “What do you know, it actually feels real.”

“How’d you guys do this?’ Weiss asked as she felt the exterior of a parked car. “Is this all light?”

“Yes. Everything you see here is hard light,” Batman began to explain. “Reversed engineered from alien technology, we can simulate any number of scenarios. Time of day, weather, environments both on Earth and extra-terrestrial, anything is possible in this room.”

“That is certainly useful,” Pyrrha noted. Already she was thinking of what the huntsmen academies would have given to have access to this technology. What her former trainers and sponsors would have given to have access. Their own holographic and hard light technology had been steadily developing for the past decade, but she hadn’t even heard of anything this seamless. The amount of training one could have undertaken in such a room would have been leagues above what standard drills and spars with her fellow classmates would have offered, and she could see how the League would want to use this room to evaluate them.

“I take it you’re going to be testing us in here.” Blake’s assumption was met with a nod from the Batman, who began to walk away.

“Before any of you fight down there, we need to know exactly what you are capable of,” he explained. “You all will be put into various scenarios in the next few days to test your capabilities. This one will be relatively simple. You come across a large gang terrorizing the populace, and you move to intercept.”

As he said this, holographic people began to appear. They were the stereotypical image of thugs. Ski masks that only showed the mouth and eyes, baggy clothes that were dull in color and material, dark jeans, some of which had holes and tears. Many of them were holding weapons, mostly makeshift such as crowbars, wooden bats and pipes, while a few had some pistols, shotguns, and rifles.

“Oh, this will be _fun_.” Nora grinned while their newly repaired weapons were wheeled out to them. Smiles on their faces, RWBY and JNPR made their way over to the cart and inspected them. The cracks and dents that once marred them, the result of days of nonstop fighting, were now non-existent.

“Ooh, my baby!” Ruby cried as she held Crescent Rose to her chest. “I’m so happy you’re okay!” While Ruby continued to gush over her weapon, the others merely smiled and equipped their own.

“So,” Ren asked as he checked the chambers of Stormflower, seeing that they were empty, “what are the rules?”

“Only one,” Batman replied. “You cannot kill or cripple them. Anything else is fair game.”

“How will you tell?” Blake tested Gambol Shroud with a few swings, smiling to herself as the steel blade whistled through the air.

“We have sensors in place to monitor the impacts each hologram would receive,” Batman clarified as he began walking to the exit. “Any and all injuries, non-fatal or otherwise, will be accurately measured for evaluation.” He paused at the door and turned back to them, his arms by his side. “Training starts in thirty seconds. Good luck.”

At his declaration, the door slammed shut and closed them all in. Yang couldn’t help but smile as she turned to face the holographic city. The thugs had disappeared now, leaving the city barren, but the teenagers didn’t mind. Small pops could be heard as Yang cracked her knuckles and popped her neck, loosening herself up for the upcoming fight. Just because it was fake didn’t mean she wasn’t going to give it her all.

“Guys, a thought,” Jaune suddenly said, catching everyone’s attention. “Remember how Batman said that people don’t have Aura here?”

“Yeah?” Yang asked as she continued to stretch.

“So, that means that these guys probably won’t either.” Jaune sheathed his sword and held out his shield. The others all looked at him for a moment in confusion, which quickly abated.

“Oh…right…” Yang spoke softly as she looked at her gauntlets. With a sigh, she collapsed them and mentally prepared herself. The others all did the same as they either sheathed their weapons or shifted their stances to the blunt end.

“He also said that we’re stronger than people here, even without Aura,” Ren pointed out. “Which means we’ll need to hold ourselves back even more.”

Nora groaned. “You know, I kind of liked it when everyone had powers. That meant I didn’t have to hold back or worry about hurting someone.”

“Same.” Ruby nodded. Before anyone could reply, a red light shone across the training room, signifying the training was about to begin. The huntsmen and huntresses tensed as they prepared for the fight, and the red light began to blink. Once, twice, and on the third time a buzzer rang out.

At once, hordes of cars sped towards them from all sides, gangsters and thugs firing their weapons at the huntsmen and huntresses from passenger windows and forcing RWBY and JNPR into cover. Bulllets pinged off of parked cars and concrete pillars, sending small chunks of debris flying from the shattering impacts. Yang grit her teeth and cursed the fact that she couldn’t use Ember Celica. With them, she could easily take one or two of them down and break the line of fire, but that would also kill them. Even if the training hadn’t forbade it, she wasn’t about to kill a person if she could help it. The others were doing the same, although Jaune and Pyrrha were beginning to use their shields to block the oncoming fire. At the same time, Weiss was forming a shield wall of glyphs and as the cars continued to circle them, Ruby began trying to take out the tires.

But Yang was not about to let them do all the work. Her eyes red, she ripped the car door she was hiding behind and flung it towards a speeding car, striking the front and caving it in. The car screeched to a halt and airbags were deployed. The holographic criminals began to pile out of the broken car and the other cars began redirecting their fire to cover them, but Yang was already on the move. She jumped high into the air and slammed down on another hood, sending the back of the car upwards and cracking the asphalt and glass windows alike.

The other cars all screeched to a halt and the criminals moved out of them, allowing RWBY and JNPR to make their move. Jaune and Pyrrha ran towards a group of gangsters wielding submachine guns, but the bullets merely pinged off of their shields and they continued their advance. Jaune slammed his shield into one, sending him flying back into a closed car door and denting it, and he followed with a kick to the chest of another gangster. Pyrrha, meanwhile, expertly swung her sword at another gangster, knocking the gun out of his hand and sticking him with the flat of her blade. The force tumbled him and Pyrrha swung her leg in an arc, sweeping him off his feet and onto his back. With a quick blow to the head, the criminal was knocked unconscious, and the hologram briefly glowed red then disappeared. A quick look showed that the one Jaune had kicked into the car was also gone.

“Well, that answers my question,” Pyrrha said with a smile as she turned her sword into a spear and threw it at a criminal, catching him by the shirt and pinning him to a nearby wall. She ran at him and delivered a flying knee, knocking the air out of his body and followed with a few quick jabs to the head and causing the hologram to disappear.

Jaune, meanwhile, was busy using his shield to block a shotgun blast, one that knocked him to the ground. Rather than let the gunman exploit his position, Jaune raised his shield to block another shot and kicked his legs out, striking the shins and knocking the criminal down. The blond huntsman immediately exploited this by jumping to his feet and delivering a running kick to the head, knocking the thug out and causing it to disappear. Hearing a click, Jaune swung his shield and knocked the gun out of the hands of another just as it fired, the sound ringing in his eardrums as he punched the man in the face. He followed with a shield bash, knocking the man to the ground and allowing Jaune to finish him off with a stomp to the arm, breaking it and causing the hologram to disappear.

On the other side of the street, Ruby was swinging the blunt end of Crescent Rose in wide arcs, striking the torsos and legs of several different criminals at once. Many immediately disappeared with a red pulse, allowing Ruby to concentrate on the next. Avoiding the use of her blade at all times, Ruby zoomed around the city street with her Semblance, moving from criminal to criminal in a cloud of rose petals. By now, all the criminals with guns were gone, leaving behind only the ones with no weapons at all or crude melee weapons, which Ruby happily exploited. One thug ran at her with a raised bat, but Ruby swung Crescent Rose upwards and chopped it in half. The holographic assailant immediately flung the broken bat at Ruby, who was not expecting the criminal to react so quickly. The broken bat hit her face and loosened her grip on her weapon, allowing the felon to rip it from her hands and throw it to the side.

“Eep!” Ruby squeaked as she ducked under the criminal’s punch. More were running at her, seeing an opening, and Ruby quickly moved back and left petals in her wake. Once she stopped, another criminal ran at her from the side with a knife and swung, forcing Ruby to back and weave away from the blade several times before the attacker paused. Ruby seized her opening and threw a light jab at the man’s face, breaking the nose and forcing him to clutch it in apparent pain. Ruby then grabbed the man’s arm and threw him over her shoulder, sending him flying a few feet into a nearby newspaper dispenser. A red pulse soon followed as the hologram disappeared, and before other criminals could reach her, Ruby used her Semblance to grab the discarded Crescent Rose once more. She then swung her weapon’s blunt end into the head of another enemy, immediately forcing it to disappear.

The battle was beginning to come to a close now, with the huntsmen and huntresses now fighting much more confidently.  Ren was taking on several at once, expertly throwing jabs, kicks and open palms into the chest and face of any in his path. Several attempted to hit him with lead pipes or crowbars, but Ren merely ripped the weapons from their hands and hit them with it. By the time Nora finally got back to him, the crowd of ten thugs that were previously on him were reduced to just two, both of which Nora immediately incapacitated with a few swings to the back. Nora smiled at Ren as the two of them ran towards a fresh group of opponents, a few of them now wielding small handguns that they fired at the huntsmen and huntresses. The small caliber rounds merely shattered against their Aura, feeling like pinpricks and doing nothing to stop their advance. Nora swung her hammer against one of the criminals, flinging him towards another group and forcing all of them to disappear in a red pulse.

Weiss was bouncing between her glyphs like a human pinball, gently knocking the weapons from her foes’ hands as she passed and striking them with Myrtenaster’s pommel. Normally she would be lightly stabbing them, but the lack of Aura made that particularly dangerous to her opponents. Yet, Weiss prided herself on being able to adapt and so she began forming glyphs underneath her opponents and launching them into the air. Other glyphs intercepted them and shot them to the ground hard, knocking them out and making them disappear. Next to her, Blake was tying up criminals in her ribbon and leaving them helpless against her punches and kicks. A thug swung a wooden plank with nails on one end at her, but her Semblance took the blow and allowed her to move to safety. She then kneed the assaulter in the gut, knocking the air from his lungs and leaving him helpless as she socked him several times across the jaw, to which he finally disappeared.

As the last thug disappeared, a loud buzz rang out and the city disappeared, returning to the empty room it was before.

“RWBY, JNPR,” the voice of Batman sounded out over the intercom as a holographic screen appeared, “well done. You’ve all completed the training.”

“Thank you.” Weiss smiled, as did the others. “So, how’d we do?”

“Lie Ren, Pyrrha Nikos, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, you all passed. The rest of you failed.” At his declaration, everyone lost their composure and hunched down before righting themselves. Incredulously, they all looked at the screen in confusion.

“How? We all held back! We didn’t kill anyone!” Yang asked, her arms spread wide.

Immediately, the screen shifted to a recording of their fight, showing angles from individual cameras. The first one focused on Yang as she slammed down on the car. “Yang, your action here would have resulted in several crippling injuries and potential fatalities. The driver suffered from a broken neck along with a severe concussion and internal bleeding, while the passenger suffered the same results.” Yang shrunk in on herself as accurate representations of their injuries were displayed before the screen shifted to Jaune.

“Jaune, when you kicked this man into the car,” the screen showed the kick in question, “you broke his back. You would have paralyzed him from the waist down.”

“…oh…” Jaune looked pale as he imagined if that had that been a real person while the screen shifted to Ruby swinging the blunt end of Crescent Rose into a man’s head.

“Ruby, this would have fractured his skull and caused severe cerebral hemorrhaging. He would’ve had to spend months in intense physical therapy just to be able to walk.” Ruby awkwardly kicked her feet as Nora was uncharacteristically calm. The screen shifted to her swinging her hammer at a man’s back, his bones highlighted and showing the force of the impact shattering his spine.

“Nora, you broke this man’s back completely, which would have left him a quadriplegic for the rest of his life, at best.” Nora solemnly nodded as the screen turned blank. Behind them, the door to the training arena opened and Batman walked inside, the door remaining open behind him.

“…so,” Nora finally spoke, “that bad, huh?”

“In all honesty, I was expecting worse,” Batman clarified. “Even so, that is why we are having these training sessions now. If you’re going to fight alongside us, you will be best served to know how to fight without using your full strength unless absolutely necessary.”

“Alright,” Ruby replied with a determined nod. A thought then came to mind as she raised her finger. “Question, is there an armory in here? I have some ideas on how to make our guns work without, you know, killing anyone.”

“Vigilante will escort you there.” Batman pressed a few buttons on his gauntlet, likely sending the message to this Vigilante person. Idly, Ruby wondered whether or not the Justice League were _all_ vigilantes. From what she could tell, they weren’t official government agents or sponsored by any governments of any kind.

“As for the rest of you, I encourage you all to take some time and evaluate your performance. I’ve sent you all recordings of the exercise. Study them well.”

* * *

 

“So, kid, ya like rifles?” the Vigilante asked. Ruby had seen him before in the cafeteria, usually sitting with a man decked in shiny gold armor. His casual blue cowboy outfit with a red bandana across his face made him stand out from the positively medieval-looking man he was apparently best friends with. He was also notable for having a pair of six-shooters holstered to his hips, which no other League member had.

“Yep,” Ruby said with a pop as she tinkered with a bullet. “Can you hand me the socket wrench, please?”

“Sure.” Vigilante handed the tool in question over to the young girl. Without taking her eyes off her contraption, Ruby took the wrench and continued to work. “Must admit, its nice to finally have someone else on this team who uses guns.”

“I’ve been meaning to ask about that. Why is it that no one else uses guns in the League? I mean, explosives, maces, and swords are fine, but not guns?”

“Hell if I know, kid.” Vigilante shrugged. “Way I see it, guns are tools, nothing more. Still, if I had to guess, guns can only be used to shoot things while a sword can do a bit more. Either way, I ain’t judging.”

“Same here. Besides, back on Remnant everyone’s weapons can shift from a gun mode into some kind of melee weapon.” She paused as she remembered Jaune’s weapon and awkwardly chuckled. “Well, most everyone. By the way, where is Jaune?”

“Last I checked, he was with Shining Knight working on his sword play.”

“Oh, that makes sense.” Ruby began to attach completed components together. “He seems nice.”

“He is. Little old fashioned, but he’s a good man.” Vigilante paused to look at the completed device Ruby was now holding and giving an inspecting gaze. “So, mind telling me what that is?”

“Well, after we rechambered all of our weapons to fire rubber bullets or pellets,” Ruby began to explain, “I got the idea that they simply weren’t enough. So, this should add a slight electrical charge to the round. I call it a round shocker.”

“A shock round, eh? Could be useful. You realize that rubber doesn’t conduct electricity, right?” Ruby stopped inspecting the device at the poised question and silently hung her head, mumbling something about Lightning Dust, and Vigilante patted her shoulder. “Don’t worry, I made that mistake once, too. But, the idea has potential. I actually have some ideas on how to modify the rounds your weapons fire that will make them non-lethal and specialized. Mind if I help?”

“Sure!” Ruby smiled and scooted over, allowing the cowboy to sit down next to her and begin to explain how his revolver’s rounds worked.

* * *

 

“Gagh!” Jaune grunted as he fell onto his back. Sweat pooled on his forehead and he panted heavily, only to stop once an armored gauntlet reached down and offered itself to him. “Thanks, Justin.”

“It is no problem,” Shining Knight said as he helped Jaune to his feet. “Your form needs work. You are too heavy on your feet, and you leave yourself too open on your right side.”

“Yeah, Pyrrha says that a lot.” Jaune sighed as he rolled his shoulders. “I’ve been working on it, but it’s taking a while.”

“Don’t worry.” Shining Knight smiled. “The greatest knights of all started off as squires. I have the feeling that you’ll get there eventually.”

“Thank you.” Jaune flashed a smile back then readied himself. “So, that sword and armor of yours. Is it actually magic?”

“Indeed,” Shining Knight replied. “Enchanted by the great wizard Merlin himself. My armor protects me from harm, and my sword can cut through anything.”

“Wow,” Jaune cooed as he eyed the enchanted weapons then looked at his. “Mine are just…family heirlooms. They were used in the Great War and passed down my family for generations. Otherwise, they’re kind of plain compared to the others.”

“And yet, they have a history to them that none of the others can share,” Shining Knight countered. “Your weapon may not be able to spit fire or wield the elements, but it has survived the tests of time and been wielded by generations of Arcs. The others may have their own weapons, ones they made themselves that can do fantastical things, but only yours can truly say it has a legacy.”

“Yeah.” Jaune nodded and faintly smiled. “That legacy is why I went to Beacon in the first place. They were all heroes, and I wanted to continue that.”

“Honoring one’s family is one of the greatest things a man can do,” Shining Knight agreed. He then noticed a forlorn look on Jaune’s face, and Shining Knight immediately put his hand on his shoulder. “Worry not. You will see your family again.”

“I know.” Jaune’s expression then hardened. “But that won’t happen until Brainiac is dead.”

“Easy.” Shining Knight held up his palm. “Do not let desires for vengeance cloud your heart. He will be brought to justice, I assure you. But if you let your desire for vengeance consume you, the only one who wins is Brainiac. Never lose sight of who you are.”

Jaune looked at him for a while then sighed. “Yeah, you’re right.” He then readied himself and placed his shield out in front of him, his sword arm reared back. “Ready.”

“Of course.” Shining Knight nodded then readied himself as well. Then, with a simultaneous yell, the two knights charged at each other.

* * *

 

Yang screamed as she clobbered the last thug inside the training room, the body disappearing in a flash of red. The buzzer sounded immediately afterwards, and Yang took the moment to wipe away the sheen of sweat that had been accumulating on her brow.

“That was very good, Yang,” Wonder Woman called out as she and Pyrrha walked into the room. Yang flashed a thumbs up while Pyrrha tossed a water bottle to the brawler, who easily caught it and began greedily drinking it down.

“Thanks,” Yang said as she finished drinking and screwed the cap back down. “I felt like I didn’t pull my punching enough a few times. Need to work on that.”

“You’ll get it down, I’m sure of it.” Wonder Woman smiled as Yang tossed the water bottle back to Pyrrha. As Yang did, she couldn’t help but notice the golden lasso on the Amazon’s hip, which Wonder Woman noticed.

“You’re curious about the Lasso of Hestia?” she guessed, and Yang nodded. “It’s a weapon forged by the god Hephaestus from Gaia’s Golden Girdle and imbued with the fires of Hestia.  It is indestructible, can expand however far I desire, and can compel people to tell the truth at all times.”

“It can make people tell the truth?” Yang asked with a raised eyebrow. “Really?”

“If you want, I can show you,” Wonder Woman offered. “The others were curious as well and I see no harm in it.”

“Sure, why not.” Yang shrugged then followed the two out of the training room and into the lounge. She was greeted by everyone else, and with a smile she waved.

“Are you all sure you want to do this?” Wonder Woman asked. She received affirmative nods in reply, and so the Amazon princess took the lasso into her hands. “So, who wants to go first? You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

Unlike before, the teenagers were slow to reply. Although the possibility of a truth-bearing lasso was hard to believe, the fact remained that the possibility was there. None of them knew what embarrassing secrets would be told. Finally, with a shrug, Jaune stepped forward.

“I’ll go,” Jaune declared. “I’m pretty much an open book anyway, so I see no problem with it.”

“I’ll go with you,” Pyrrha immediately responded with a smile. “I’m not going to let you do this by yourself.”

“Thanks, Pyrrha.” Jaune smiled back, to which Pyrrha slightly blushed. The others all got knowing smirks on their faces while Nora plotted on how to use this session to Pyrrha’s benefit. With a nod, Wonder Woman gently wrapped the lasso around their wrists and stepped back.

“I…don’t feel any different,” Jaune said, slightly relieved.

“In order for the magic to take effect, someone must ask you a question,” Wonder Woman clarified. Ruby then jumped in her seat slightly and cutely raised her hand, and with a laugh Jaune pointed at her to proceed.

“What do you think of Crescent Rose?” Ruby asked while holding her weapon in her lap.

“I think it’s a lovely weapon, Ruby,” Pyrrha answered. “I can see that you put a lot of effort into it, and the craftsmanship is superb, as is its wielder.”

“Aw, thank you!” Ruby smiled then turned to Jaune expectedly, who smiled back.

“I’m with Pyrrha here,” Jaune stated. “Although, I’ve got to admit that I feel like it’s a little bit overcomplicated.”

Ruby pursed and tapped her lips before nodding. “Yeah, I can see that. It did cost a lot of lien to maintain.” She smiled before sitting down again. Before anyone could speak up, Nora suddenly shouted.

“What do you think about each other?!” Nora shouted. A nervous look suddenly crossed Pyrrha’s face, but Jaune then began to speak.

“Pyrrha is, in all honestly, my best friend,” Jaune happily revealed. “She was the first person to ever believe in me, the person who made me who I am today. Without her, I likely would have gotten myself killed in Initiation, and she stuck by me even when I didn’t deserve it. Especially when I didn’t deserve it, when I let my stupid pride get the better of me. She made me into a better leader and friend, and she’s who I strive to emulate in everything I do as a huntsman. I couldn’t ask for a better partner and friend.”

“Aww!” everyone cooed at the praise while Pyrrha blushed. Happy tears began to pool in her eyes, and with a sniffle she wiped them and began to speak.

“You’re also my best friend, Jaune. You make me feel like a normal girl, not just a champion. Thanks to you, I’ve been able to make lifelong friends that like me for me, not just because of my abilities. I’m just so happy to be part of your life, and I know that while you may not be as strong as us yet, you will grow into something grand. I can’t wait for when that day comes.” Pyrrha smiled brightly at her partner, who through teary eyes did the same. Ruby moved to remove the lasso, but before she could even stand, Pyrrha began to speak again.

“Also, I’ve wanted you to ask me out for the past three months, and seeing you constantly ask Weiss out hurt me on the inside!” Pyrrha cheerfully announced while looks of shock enveloped everyone. The happy looks on the partners’ faces evaporated and was replaced with mortification as they realized what she just said.

“Oh no…” Nora whispered in horror as everyone stared at what they knew was about to unfold.

“Oh.” Jaune noted with a massive blush.  He tried to stop himself, but found that he couldn’t. “Honestly, due to my crippling lack of self-confidence that I act all macho in an attempt to cover up, I never believed that you would be interested in a guy like me. It’s likely that any hints you might have given would have flown right over my head.”

“That’s also my fault, as I’m a bit too passive for my own good sometimes.” Pyrrha’s words continued to flow out of her mouth, but as she continued a sense of relief began to wash over her, as if a massive weight was finally being lifted off her shoulders. “Plus, I tend to place others’ happiness above my own, which is why I tried to help you get together with Weiss instead of me. Speaking of which, if you still want to pursue her or anyone else, I’ll still try to help you.”

“You’re perfect, Pyrrha, and anyone would be lucky to have you,” Jaune insisted. Even with his thoughts and feelings thrown into turmoil from these revelations, the lasso was thankfully keeping him articulate instead of letting him dissolve into a stammering mess. “But, I can’t help but feel like you could easily get someone better than me.”

“Don’t say that, I hate it when you put yourself down. You’re better than that.”

“Thank you.” Jaune smiled. “In any other circumstance, I may have just asked you out to try and make up for my blindness before, but right now I’m an emotional black hole that isn’t in any shape to try and pursue a romantic relationship, so I must respectfully decline your confession.”

“That’s alright. I myself am not in any condition to pursue romance either. But, I’ll drown my sorrows tonight with a tub of chocolate ice cream.”

“As I will wake up sweaty from terrible nightmares about my personal failings getting all of you killed.”

“I hate it when you look sad. It’s like looking at a kicked puppy. Do you need a hug?”

“Yes, yes I do.” Jaune and Pyrrha immediately hugged and smiled into each other’s’ shoulders, and a shell-shocked Ruby slowly stepped towards them.

“So…uh…. That was…” Ruby stared wide eyed at the two happy teenagers while the others all gaped at the scene.

“I didn’t think that was going to happen… Pyrrha, I’m so sorry…” Nora’s face was filled with remorse, which only increased when Pyrrha merely smiled at her.

“It’s okay, Nora. You didn’t know, and I won’t hold it against you.” Nora nodded at Pyrrha’s declaration as Ruby finally unwrapped the lasso from their wrists. The two partners blinked as the effects wore off, then looked at each other. Their faces turned scarlet, and immediately jumped back and fast walked to opposite ends of the large room.

“…Well, I thought that was beautiful,” Diana stated before turning to the others. “So, who’s next?”

* * *

 

“Ren, be honest with me,” Jaune quietly whispered to his teammate in their room’s shared restroom. “Were Pyrrha’s feelings towards me that obvious?”

“Yes, yes they were,” Ren answered out of the corner of his mouth as he continued to brush his teeth. “Nora and I didn’t say anything out of respect for Pyrrha, and we hoped that you would see it eventually.”

“Oh…” Jaune looked downcast until Ren patted his shoulder.

“It’s okay. The heart is a mysterious thing.” He paused to spit into the sink then turned to face him. “So, now that you know..?”

“Honestly, I don’t know.” Jaune sighed and shook his head. “She’s my best friend, Ren. I don’t want to mess that up. And right now, I’m not in any mood for dating.”

“I can respect that.” Ren nodded. A nervous look then crossed his face. “I still need to figure out where I’m going to take Nora out on our first date.”

“You’ll figure it out, man. She’ll enjoy anything you come up with.” Jaune offered a reassuring smile. Internally, he was happy that he and Pyrrha were not the only ones embarrassed by the magical lasso. Lots of embarrassing truths were revealed during that hour, from Yang having a fear of cuttlefish and other tentacled creatures, Weiss revealing that she was the moderator of a popular Ninjas of Love forum in Beacon, topped off with Nora dramatically revealing  her true feelings towards Ren and he to her. Jaune could’ve sworn she broke out into song for part of it before catching herself. They then asked each other out in equally dramatic fashions, and only then did the truth-session cease.

Jaune and Ren then turned to the door into their room and stared at the handle. The blond gulped and twisted the knob, opening it and revealing the two women on his team currently sitting on their beds and wearing their nightwear. Pyrrha was currently eating out of a tub of chocolate ice cream, and with an embarrassed blush on her face she stared at her partner as he did the same to her. Nora, meanwhile, merely looked content as she lay across her bed.

Pyrrha and Jaune continued to stare at each other before Jaune slowly walked over and sat down next to her. Silently, the two of them stared at their knees before he coughed.

“So, uh…” he began. “Do you…have another spoon?”

Pyrrha swallowed the spoonful in her mouth before nodding. “Y…yeah. Here.” She handed a plastic spoon to her partner, who took it and looked at the tub. He then looked at Pyrrha, who nodded after a moment and gave him permission to dig in. Silently, the two began to eat, the worries of their confessions slowly ebbing away.

Nora and Ren looked happily at the sight, knowing that whatever roadblocks may come their way, everything would be alright.

* * *

 

Batman typed away at a large monitor, news feeds and data pouring in from any available source. By now, the media furor over the Remnantians’ appearance had subsided to a degree, with them focused more on Brainiac and what he did to Remnant. NATO, Russia, China, and other countries had already declared military operations to prepare for his potential arrival, as well as refining strategies developed during the previous alien invasions. The Grimm themselves were also a point of discussion, with the names RWBY and JNPR had provided them now entering the popular lexicon.

All of it served to keep their names out of the spotlight, but it was only a matter of time before people started looking around.

“Master Bruce,” a posh voice announced as a sharply dressed mustached man stepped down the stone steps of the Batcave, a plate of hot food on his hand.

“Alfred,” Batman responded without looking back.

“Your dinner, sir.” Alfred began carefully placing the assortment of plates, bowls, and cups around the Batcomputer, while Batman continued to type. The butler then took a moment to look at what his master was typing, and he raised an eyebrow. “What are these?”

“Legal papers,” Batman revealed. “RWBY and JNPR can’t stay in the Watchtower forever. Eventually, they’re going to have to come down to Earth, get a place to live and work.”

“Being a costumed vigilante doesn’t pay the bills, I suppose,” Alfred dryly stated, and Batman grunted in response. “Sir, if I may, where do you plan on sending them? I hope you aren’t planning on separating them at this time.”

“Of course not,” Batman answered. “I have a property in Metropolis that is big enough for all of eight people, and I’m not using it anyway.”

“Why do I get the feeling that isn’t your preferred solution?” Alfred guessed, and Batman sighed. He then removed his cowl, revealing his face to his longtime butler. Before Bruce could speak again, Alfred smiled. “Sir, I’m confident that Wayne Manor would be more than accommodating to their needs. Besides, I’m sure Master Damian would enjoy the company of youths his age. Lord knows he needs it.” It went unsaid as to why Bruce Wayne felt this was the best route to take. Alfred had seen it before.

A pang of sorrow filled the butler as he remembered Master Jason, but he let it pass.

“If you wish, I’ll make the arrangements for them. We have enough rooms in this house for each to get their own.”

“Thank you, Alfred.” Bruce nodded and a faint ghost of a smile graced his lips before disappearing. “I’ll run it by them tomorrow, see what they—”

He was interrupted by a dull thud.

* * *

 

High above the streets of Gotham City, the world seemed different. The lights of the city below were dim, and the sounds of cars honking and people’s steps were dull from the distance. A police helicopter would occasionally fly overhead, and the sound of sirens and gunshots would punctuate the air every few minutes. For the most crime-ridden city in the country, the night air was relatively peaceful.

None of that mattered to a lone man standing on a construction site overlook. The light of the full moon was all that illuminated him. Wearing a dull brown coat that looked both patchy and unsettling along with a hangman’s noose around his neck, the man was covered in glass vials filled with a bubbly, orange liquid. On his left arm, tubes extended down to retractable syringes on his fingertips, while a hook and chain was attached to his chest. A straw hat, jagged along the rim, cast a deep shadow over his burlap-sack covered face, the sack itself containing a gas mask and goggles.

A dark chuckle escaped the man as he brought up a detonator to his face, his thumb hovering over the button. Then, without hesitation, he pressed down. At once, explosions rippled throughout Gotham City, but instead of fire, green gas filled the streets and enveloped everyone. The city ground to a halt as the gas obscured everything in sight..

Then, the sounds of thousands of terrified screams filled the air as Gotham City was engulfed in fear.

[~][~]


	5. A Nightmare in Gotham City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scarecrow plunges Gotham City into a chaos, spreading a new and more dangerous version of his infamous Fear Gas in an act of pure terror and fear. Batman, Robin, and the rest of the Bat-Family work tirelessly to stem the tide, all while RWBY and JNPR can only watch helplessly from high above.

**Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC)**  
  
**Chapter 5: A Nightmare in Gotham City**

* * *

 

The Watchtower was buzzing with activity as red light flashed through the space station, accompanied by a loud and obnoxious alarm. League members hurried to their stations and rushed through hallways, the sight of which greeted RWBY and JNPR as they opened their doors, still clad in their pajamas.  
  
“What’s going on?” Weiss asked a passing League member, a dark-skinned woman clad in skintight orange. If she remembered correctly, the woman called herself Vixen, with the ability to copy the traits of any animal she wanted.  
  
“Situation in Gotham,” Vixen began to explain as she continued to rush down the hall. “There’s been an attack, and right now we’re on standby.”  
  
The teenagers quickly followed after the woman, more Leaguers joining in as they went, until they finally stopped at a large conference room. A massive monitor was above them, displaying a map of Gotham City’s three main islands along with the smaller islands around them. On the middle island, a large section along the Atlantic coast was highlighted in red. Mr. Terrific was typing away at keyboards, and Blake could see data and information stream in on the smaller monitors around him.  
  
“Alright everyone, listen up,” he said as he kept his eyes on the monitors. “There’s been a chemical attack in Gotham City, originating in the Bowery, which has already affected thousands of people on the southern half of Gotham’s main island. Early reports suggest that the gas is a new form of fear toxin, and evidence points to Doctor Jonathan Crane, the Scarecrow, as the culprit.”  
  
“Scarecrow…” Jaune whispered, vaguely remembering the name from the dossiers the League had given them. From what he remembered, Jonathan Crane used to be a psychologist at Arkham Asylum, a mental institution in Gotham City that had routinely been converted into a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane. Why that place had not been shut down yet was beyond Jaune’s ability to comprehend, as nothing he read indicated that place was successful in rehabilitating its residents. In fact, it often seemed to do the opposite, and so many people had escaped from it that they might as well not have been locked up at all.  
  
Regardless, Crane worked there for several years, and used his patients in his fear experiments. He was obsessed with the emotion, stemming from an incident in his childhood, and eventually created a gas that could induce extreme amounts of fear into a person’s mind, to the point of driving many victims into madness. Eventually, Crane’s unethical experiments were discovered and he was promptly fired, only for him to kill his former colleagues and drive his supervisor into a fear gas-induced insanity. He then went on a reign of terror, attacking dozens of innocent people, and when Batman finally caught him, he was thrown into the very place he had worked in for years.  
  
Jaune and the others found it ironic that a psychologist working on the insane would go insane himself, but in any case, the Scarecrow was among the most dangerous supervillains Batman dealt with on a regular basis. Most of the time, his attacks were isolated and contained to a few individuals, with Batman and the Gotham City Police Department able to handle him on their own. But an attack on this scale was something else entirely, and so it was obvious the League would take notice.  
  
“The GCPD has already mobilized and a manhunt is underway for Scarecrow. Should the situation worsen, a Justice League response team will be deployed to assist.”  
  
“Wait, we’re not going down there?” Yang asked, and Mr. Terrific shook his head.  
  
“We already have boots on the ground,” he announced. “Batman and his team were able to respond immediately. They have…requested to leave Scarecrow up to them. Also, Ms. Xiao Long, he specifically forbade either you or friends from going down there under any circumstances.”  
  
“WHAT?” Yang shouted indignantly while the others stared in shock.  
  
“But we want to help!” Ruby insisted, only for Superman to fly down and shake his head.  
  
“I agree with Batman on this one. Scarecrow is too much of a threat to any of you right now.” Superman then floated upwards and cleared his throat. “Everyone, the League is currently on standby. I want to be able to get down there immediately. If things get too out of hand, I don’t care what Batman says, we’re going. John, I need you to take Steel and a few others and prep the Javelins. Mr. Terrific, ready the teleporter bay and start working on an antidote. I suspect it’s a new formula, so what we have now won’t work.”  
  
“On it,” both of the men announced as they quickly left to perform their assigned tasks. Superman nodded then turned back to the assembled League.  
  
“As for the rest of you, you all have your assigned duties. Dismissed.” At Superman’s orders, the League disbanded, with everyone splitting apart as they moved to their respective stations in the Watchtower. Except for RWBY and JNPR, who merely stood there in confusion. Yang looked frustrated, her arms crossed and tapping her foot, while the others merely looked at Superman expectantly.  
  
“Listen, Superman, I know that we can help,” Ruby insisted once more. “Just because we’re young doesn’t mean…”  
  
“Your age has nothing to do with our decision,” Superman cut her off with a raised hand. Seeing the looks on their faces, he sighed. “Look, I know you want to help. It’s admirable, and never lose sight of that, but Scarecrow is like nothing you’ve ever fought before. He gets inside your head, uses your greatest fears in such a way that you’re left helpless as he brings them to the forefront of your mind.”  
  
“We can handle a little fear,” Weiss declared, but Superman shook his head.  
  
“Not like what he does, and not in your present condition. Our decision is final,” Superman declared with such finality that the teenagers knew they would not be able to dissuade him. They released a reluctant sigh of defeat before Blake looked back at the Kryptonian.  
  
“Well, there has to be _something_ we can do. Just because we can’t go down there doesn’t mean we can’t help,” Blake stated, to which Superman nodded. He faintly smiled in pride before throwing his thumb to the monitors Mr. Terrific formerly presided over.  
  
“You eight will be on monitor duty while J’onn helps with the antidote. We need you to keep watch over the situation in Gotham City as well as keep an eye on the rest of the planet. If anything comes up, you let us know.”  
  
The teenagers looked among themselves for a moment then back at Superman, nodding in understanding. Superman nodded back then flew off, leaving RWBY and JNPR to trudge up to the monitors. Silently, they cursed not being able to actively participate, but at the same time were determined to perform their duties as best as they could.  
  
As they watched streams of data fly by on the screen, they couldn’t help but wonder how things were going in Gotham itself.

* * *

Thick clouds of noxious gas clung to the ground and enveloped everyone it could. Unprotected citizens screamed in absolute fear at everyone, swiping away at unseen terrors only they could see or hear.  
  
“Stay back! Stay back!”  
  
“No, no!”  
  
“Aaagh!”  
  
More and more screams filled the air, but the masked gunmen ignored them. Wearing thick burlap sacks that housed rebreathers, they were spared from the harmful effects of the gas, which they used to their benefit. Their suits were jagged and filthy, looking like they came straight out of a horror film and served to frighten anyone that came in their path.  
  
“Stay back, you monsters!” One man shouted through terror filled eyes as he pumped his shotgun, keeping guard over his workshop. He wasn’t aiming at the masked men, rather at the terrified bystanders trying to escape the gas. One woman got too close, and in a panic, he fired at them. His aim was off significantly, striking the brick wall above her head, but it was enough to send the panicked survivors off. He seemed to be relieved at this, somewhat, only to see the gunmen march ever closer to him.  
  
“I said stay ba—” He didn’t get to finish his sentence as one of the men shot him. Three bullets pierced his body and he fell to the ground, a pool of blood expanding on the pavement as he gasped for pained breath. The men walked over him, pressing a button to open the garage doors and turning around.  
  
“Alright, this is a good enough spot for the next bomb,” one of the men declared, his voice muffled by his mask. “Bring the truck around.”  
  
At his order, the roar of an engine sounded off and a truck rolled down the street. A small carrier was attached to the back. It backed into the open garage, one of the men guiding it inside before ordering it to halt. Immediately, the back hatch opened, and men poured out of the vehicle and began pushing a large cylindrical object of it. A monitor was attached to the side, displaying the internal pressure and an empty timer on the top right corner.  
  
“Careful, careful! We don’t want it to blow yet!” the group’s leader declared as the bomb almost struck a wall. “Move it into the elevator.” The men did as they were told and hefted the heavy bomb to the elevator in question, while another man closed the hatch and banged the truck twice. Taking the signal, the truck roared off into the night and left the men behind. The criminal watched as it disappeared around a corner and nodded to himself once it did, then turned around to head back into the garage. The others were already upstairs and arming the bomb, leaving him alone, but he couldn’t help but smile at what was going to come next. Fear, pure, unadulterated fear, was going to plunge Gotham City into chaos. Everyone would be powerless to stop Scarecrow and his gang, and Gotham City would be theirs. By the end of the night, they would all be rich.  
  
“Yo, Frank!” a voice yelled from upstairs, directing the man in question’s head upwards. “Get your ass in here before the Bat shows up!”  
  
“Really, Bob?” Frank asked with an amused chuckle. “You honestly think that the Batman will come here? He’s been up in that space station of theirs all week, working on those aliens and what not.”  
  
“I don’t think, I _know_. Especially after the job we just pulled,” Bob barked back. “Look, I know that you’ve only been in Gotham for a few weeks, but trust me, you do _not_ want to get caught by the Bat. He’s comin’, and if we don’t ready ourselves, we’re as good as dead.”  
  
“Alright, alright.” Frank threw his arms in the air and shrugged. “I’m comin’, I’m comin’.”  
  
He sighed and moved back towards the garage, only to stop once he heard gasps of breath coming from below him. Looking down, he saw the man he shot earlier clutching his wounds in obvious pain, his skin quickly paling as he lost more and more blood.  
  
“Ple…plea…please…” the man gurgled out, and Frank couldn’t help but smile darkly. Frank crouched down and rubbed his hand on the man’s bald head, while his other hand reached down to his sidearm.  
  
“Sshh, sshh, sshh,” he whispered to the man as he unholstered his pistol and clicked the safety off. He then aimed the weapon at the dying man’s head. “Don’t worry, it’ll all be over soon.”  
  
He prepared to pull the trigger, only for the sound of breaking glass to catch his attention, making him bolt upright in alarm. Frank’s heart began to beat harder in his chest as he holstered his pistol and pulled out his automatic rifle, the symbol of a penguin engraved on the side.  
  
“Who’s there?” he quietly called out as he rounded a parked truck, his finger tapping the side of his trigger guard. To his relief he saw nothing. “Must have been my imagination.”  
  
“Frank, come on!” Bob called back out to him. He was beginning to sound annoyed, and Frank sighed.  
  
“I’m coming, goddamn,” Frank shouted and shook his head. He began walking back, moving past the spot where the dying man once laid, and pushed the button to close the door behind him, only to freeze in his tracks. He turned around and stared at the pool of blood on the concrete, only to find no trace of a body. Hoping his eyes were deceiving him, he ducked beneath the closing garage door and knelt down next to the blood, only to confirm that nothing was there. Then, out of the corner of his eye, a shadow moved. Frank bolted upright and aimed his rifle but did not fire, as there was nothing there.  
  
His heart was now pounding in his chest, and he moved to run back inside, only to find the door was closed. Cursing to himself, he ran up to the controls and moved to open it back up, only to find that the buttons were no longer working.  
  
“Come on, come on!” he grunted as he repeatedly pressed the buttons, only to pause when he noticed an object attached to the side. Curious, he leaned over and pried it off, and what he saw made his heart jump into his throat. It was a small disk, no bigger than his thumb, with the symbol of a bat emblazoned on its face.  
  
“Oh, shi—” He never got to finish his sentence as a black form descended on him from above, knocking him to the ground and the air out of his lungs. His rifle was flung to the side as the creature’s black hand covered his mouth, his arm wrapping around his neck. Through wide eyes and futile struggle, Frank saw the beast stare at him through white, featureless eyes while continuing to hold him down. He could feel his consciousness slip away, and his vision began getting blurry, and the last thought that ran through his mind was how much the creature looked like a humanoid bat.  
  
Then, everything went black.

* * *

Scarecrow’s goons were huddled around the garage’s upper floor, taking watch over windows and doorways and keeping the bomb at the center of the room. They couldn’t afford to mess this up, which was why Bob was taking his time in arming it. One wrong move, and the explosion of fear gas would turn into a fiery blast, one that would kill them all instantly. Obviously, he didn’t want that, and so he took his time.  
  
“And there…we…go,” Bob declared as he approached the final steps of the arming process. He allowed himself to smile at this. So far, everything was going to plan. They’d set off the bomb, their gas masks protecting them while everything else descended into chaos around them, and he and his crew would be free to hit every home, bank, and store they came across. He had already sized up several marks on the drive over here, ones that would fetch him and his boys a hefty payday. Once this bomb went off with the others, then the whole city would be his playground.  
  
“Uh, boss?” a voice called out. “I don’t see Frankie no more.”  
  
“God...” Bob sighed and shook his head. “He closed the door, you idiot. He’s inside the building, not outside.”  
  
“No, that’s just it. I kept watch on him, like ya’ said, and something spooked him. He ran back outside to check on it, only for another sound to distract me. When I turned back, Frankie was gone.”  
  
“What?” Bob stood upright and slowly walked over to where he had last seen his newest recruit. Sure enough, there was nothing out there, not a trace of Frank to be seen. The hairs on Bob’s neck stood upright, and at once he knew just what had happened.  
  
“He’s here,” he muttered, rubbing a spot on his arm that had been broken once before. “Everyone get in position. Now! Do not let him get to the bomb!”  
  
His men complied immediately, taking positions along the upper windows and guarding the doors, their rifles covering all angles in sight. He glanced momentarily at the primed bomb, just a few keystrokes from the timer being set, but he turned his attention back towards the elevator door. Along with the stairwell, it was the most likely route one would take. Whether the Batman would was anyone’s guess, but he wouldn’t take any chances.  
  
Then the lights suddenly exploded, one by one, into shards of glass. Panicked shots rang out as everyone fired blindly, trying to hit something that simply wasn’t there. Bob regained his senses and stopped firing and began to shout.  
  
“Hold your fire! HOLD YOUR FIRE!” he shouted over the sounds of gunfire. Slowly, the shots came to a halt and everyone waited with bated breath. His pulse pounding, his ears ringing, and the feel of sweat pooling on his skin, Bob could quite easily say he was absolutely terrified. He turned back to the door, the thought of making a run for it briefly crossing his mind.  
  
Before he could even take a step, the wooden floor exploded from underneath him, armored hands grabbing his ankles and, with a terrified scream, the thug was pulled into the dark.  
  
A barrage of fully automatic gunfire followed him, the criminals firing everything they had into the hole, hoping that somehow the Batman would still be there. Then, one of the masked men stopped as he heard another sound below him, and before he could react, the floor exploded downward, sending him plunging and a dark shape rappelling to the ceiling above. The gunmen raised their rifles to fire, only for the dark shape to throw red disks onto each of their weapons, the disks latching on with a mechanical whirl that was followed by a small explosion. The small explosives destroyed the weapons in their hands while not harming the men themselves, and in their confusion the shape pounced onto a man and knocked his head into the floor, sending him straight into unconsciousness. The dark shape then stood upright, revealing the Batman in his armored glory. His face was covered in a full mask, a sleek black rebreather over his mouth.  
  
With shouts of rage, the criminals all charged the Batman, their fists raised high and ready to be thrown. As the first one neared, Batman ducked and grabbed the arm then punched it upwards at the elbow, breaking the arm. The man shrieked in pain, helpless to defend himself as Batman pummeled him repeatedly in the face then pivoted, forcing the man to take the blow meant for the vigilante. Batman then kicked his captive in the back, sending him into his attacker before pivoting to redirect another thrown punch. Grabbing the man’s head, Batman brought it downwards into his rising knee, breaking the man’s nose and knocking him out cold. He then hefted the unconscious criminal over his shoulder and threw him into another, sending them both falling through the hole in the ground.  
  
Hearing the click of a pistol’s safety being unlocked, Batman turned and grabbed his batclaw, aiming it at the gunslinger and firing it. The grapnel attached itself to the man’s torso, latched onto it, and pulled him to the Caped Crusader who clotheslined him, knocking him flat onto his back and the air out of his lungs. While he gasped for breath, Batman didn’t rest as he simultaneously blocked three men’s knife swings with expertise, leaning back from any swings of the knife while using his armored gauntlets to deflect others. Metallic clangs were heard as they made contact, and then one overextended. Seizing his opening, Batman grabbed the arm and broke it while kicking in the knee, sending the howling man helpless to the floor.  
  
Another criminal charged at him with his knife, only for Batman to rip it from his hands and throw it like a dart into a nearby wall. He then grabbed the thug and kneed him in the stomach, followed by a powerful punch to the jaw while throwing his other elbow out to strike the other attacker. The Dark Knight then elbowed the masked man’s back, sending him to the ground then hefted him to the side, throwing him into a wall and shattering it. The final man backed away in sheer terror, the fate of his comrades exposing what was likely to happen to him as well. So, rather than fight, he attempted to flee, turning towards the stairwell. He didn’t get far, as Batman then grabbed him with the batclaw and pulled him to his arms. Taking hold of him, Batman then turned the man around to face him directly, grabbing hold of his collar and dragging him to a nearby window. He shoved the criminal through the glass, shattering it and sending shards everywhere, while the captive screamed in utter terror. Those screams increased as Batman pulled out his grapple gun and fired it to a nearby building, pulling them both high above the clouds of fear gas. As they landed, Batman turned and left him dangling above the street, held aloft by the strength of his arm.  
  
“No, no! Please!” the terrorist screamed as he dangled over the ledge. “Don’t hurt me!”  
  
“You don’t want me to hurt you? Then talk,” Batman calmly ordered, a faint growl underneath his words. “And don’t lie to me. I’ll know if you do…”  
  
“Okay, okay! What do you want to know?!”  
  
“What is Scarecrow planning? How many bombs does he have?”  
  
“He developed a new fear toxin…planned on using Gotham as a testing ground before selling it to fund his experiments…” the man grunted out as he held onto Batman’s arm tightly, the stench of ammonia drifting off of him. “There are six bombs in all, scattered throughout the city… They don’t get armed until they’re ready to go…”  
  
“How many men does he have? What did he promise them?” Batman’s tone was calm, and somehow that was even more terrifying than had he been angry. It made him seem almost inhuman.  
  
“I don’t know, honest.” Batman’s grip loosened, and the dangling man screamed and tightened his own grip. “NO, WAIT! Roughly sixty men, ten to a bomb! He promised us we’d have Gotham to ourselves, free to plunder it of everything!”  
  
“Where’d he get the equipment? Who’s the supplier?” Left unasked was whoever the buyer was, but if Batman’s assumptions were correct, they were likely the same.  
  
“I don’t know who, I swear to God!”  
  
“SWEAR TO ME!” Batman suddenly shouted as he dropped the criminal. The man screamed as he plunged, only for Batman to reverse the still attached batclaw, sending him back up to his waiting arm.  
  
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” the man wailed. “I really don’t know! I’m just a grunt, they don’t tell me anything!” He began to cry, and with a grunt Batman realized he wasn’t going to be getting any more information out of him. He glanced at the bomb still inside the garage, and realized he had what he needed from the man.  
  
“I believe you,” Batman said, then delivered a knockout punch to the man’s temple, sending him straight into unconsciousness. Carrying the man over his shoulder, Batman walked to a nearby pipe and handcuffed him to it, sending a signal to the GCPD for pickup.  
  
“Oracle, did you get that?” Batman asked as he glided back to the broken window.  
  
“ _I did, Batman,_ ” the voice of Barbara Gordon rang out through his earpiece. “ _Patching into their comms channels now. For such a well-equipped operation, they have lousy security.”_  
  
“Keep monitoring it. Tell me if you find anything,” Batman ordered as he inspected the bomb’s monitor. He tried to access the internal computer, only for the system to prove password protected. “Hmm, a time lock…”  
  
Kneeling down, Batman pulled out his decryption device and began scanning for all passwords. Finally, after a few moments, a matching password of ‘F3@R’ appeared on the holographic display, granting him access.  
  
“Oracle, I’m sending you data from the bomb’s onboard computer system. There’s a tracker attached to it, along with a list of internal components. See if you can’t use it to find the others.” Batman continued to work on the monitor before the lights switched off, signifying it was now disarmed. He then punched the monitor, breaking it and preventing any further use.  
  
“ _Will do, Bats!_ ” Another voice suddenly announced, causing Batman to bolt slightly. The voice was boisterous and not that of Barbara Gordon, and with a groan he realized it belonged to Yang.  
  
“Why are you on this channel?” he asked while sending a text message to the Watchtower, warning them to not say their actual names over the channel. A moment later, he received an acknowledging checkmark.  
  
“ _Supes put us on monitor duty rather than potentially send us down, on your specific orders might I add._ ” Yang sounded annoyed at his request, but frankly he didn’t care about whether or not she wanted to be down here and more about whether or not she was even ready to. As far as he was concerned, they were most certainly not.  
  
“ _By the way, that fight was_ awesome _! The way you just punched and kicked and dodged and all the gadgets! It was amazing!_ ” Ruby excitably announced her presence, causing Batman to sigh.  
  
“The monitor is not a place for—”  
  
“ _I know, I know. Geez, learn to live a little,_ ” Yang scoffed over the intercom while the sound of keyboards being pressed were heard. “ _Okay, let’s see here… Yep, there are five other bombs all around the city’s main islands, none of which are next to each other. Super…_ ”  
  
“ _Most of them are moving around rapidly, I imagine in trucks,_ ” Blake pointed out, then hissed. “ _Looks like one has stopped, over in the Financial District. It’s located in a construction site on Andrews Street, fiftieth floor. That thing detonates there it’ll cover the entire district…”_  
  
“ _I’m sending Nightwing over now,_ ” Oracle declared. “ _Red Hood just called in, he and Batgirl are tracking one of the trucks as we speak. I’ll send Spoiler, Red Robin, and Batwoman to other probable locations._ ”  
  
“Robin and I will find the last one. Keep me posted, Batman out.” With that, Batman shut off the radio and grappled to another building, the same one he had deposited the wounded man before. His son, Damian Wayne, was huddled over him with his hand over the man’s face while holding his wrist with the other.  
  
“Robin, how is he?” Batman asked, and Damian slowly shook his head.  
  
“He bled out, father,” Robin revealed, and Batman clenched his fist tightly. “I’m sorry, there was nothing I could do.”  
  
“It’s not your fault,” Batman replied as he and his son walked to the edge of the building. “We need to find Scarecrow, put an end to this. After we find the bombs.”  
  
“Alright.” Robin nodded as he perched himself on a gargoyle. “When we find Crane, what are going to do with him?”  
  
“Lock him away in Arkham, where he belongs.” At Batman’s declaration, Robin looked at him with a hard look.  
  
“Even after this? Father, this is the worst attack he’s done in years. We put him in Arkham, he’s liable to break out again and do worse,” Robin pointed out. Whatever decision his father made, he would go along with it, but that didn’t mean to wouldn’t voice his opinions on the matter. Batman’s hard stare answered his unasked question, and Robin shrugged. “Just pointing it out. Not saying we should.”  
  
Batman released his stare and sighed. “I know.” He then stood up and pressed a button on his gauntlet, the roar of the Batmobile answering him as it sped down the street.  
  
“ _Okay, now_ that _,_ ” Yang declared as the Batmobile came into view, “ _is officially the coolest car I’ve ever seen!_ ” It wasn’t hard to see why. The vehicle was elongated and heavily armored, with two rotary cannons on the front end and a cabin at the back. Twin spoilers, shaped like batwings, rose out the back on either side of the rear, while a single jet engine stuck out of the back, while a large single-barrel cannon sat collapsed on top of the cabin. It looked more like a tank than an armored car.  
  
Without saying a word, Batman and Robin leaped off of the building and glided down to the oncoming Batmobile, the vehicle stopping just as the two reached it. The cabin opened automatically, allowing them to drop into their seats effortlessly. Strapping themselves in, Batman took hold of the controls and activated the internal display. A radar appeared in front of Damian’s face, and he studied it intently.  
  
“Okay, we are roughly one kilometer from the nearest bomb,” Damian observed. “Due north of us. Putting in the route now.”  
  
As soon as the route appeared on the windshield, Batman slammed his foot on the gas and the armored car raced down the street, a jet of fire trailing behind it.

* * *

“Spoiler, talk to me. See anything?” Tim Drake, clad in his Red Robin armored suit, spoke softly into his earpiece, sitting on his motorcycle inside a dark alleyway. On his mask’s heads-up display, he could see the distance between him and the bomb’s transmitter tick ever closer, and he kept his grip tight on the throttle.  
  
“ _Not yet. Getting close, though,_ ” Stephanie Brown, otherwise known as Spoiler, replied. Then she sighed, and Red Robin raised an eyebrow.  
  
“Something wrong?”  
  
“ _No, but…_ ” Spoiler sighed, audible through the earpiece. “ _It’s just, of course the crazies would come out to play after Batman goes up into space for a week._ ”  
  
“We all knew that was a possibility,” Red Robin pointed out. “That’s why he had us all come into Gotham while he worked on RWBY and JNPR.”  
  
“ _Yeah, I know. Even when we see it coming from a mile away, it’s still just as annoying._ ” Spoiler paused, thinking over her words carefully. “ _How much do you want to bet Batman is planning on taking them with him?_ ”  
  
Red Robin chuckled. “I won’t take that bet. You know how he is.”  
  
“ _True that._ ” Spoiler laughed, only to cut off as screeching tires filled the audio. “ _I see them! Going in hot!_ ”  
  
“I see mine, too!” Red Robin announced as a white van passed him by. Throttling his cycle, he chased after them, his body hunched down to increase his speed. Seeing him, the van accelerated down the street, widening the gap slightly. Undeterred, Red Robin moved ever closer, only to swerve out of the way as one of the cars next to the van opened a window, allowing a masked man to lean out and fire a burst of automatic gunfire at the vigilante. The bullets passed by harmlessly where he once was, and Red Robin swerved off the street and onto the sidewalk to avoid more gunfire.  
  
“ _You know, for once I would like to have a car chase_ without _being shot at!_ ” Spoiler declared as gunfire sounded off around her.  
  
“It would be nice!” Red Robin agreed as another gunman leaned out of a car window. Without missing a beat, he reached into his belt and pulled out a shuriken shaped like an R. He threw it at the exposed gun, striking the hand and causing it to be dropped onto the street below.  
  
“Gaagh!” the terrorist grunted as he clasped his wrist in pain. Seizing his advantage, Red Robin sped towards the car and moved alongside it. Another man moved to fire at Red Robin through his window, only for him to throw explosive pellets at the front tires. They exploded, shredding the tires and causing the car to careen violently to the left and slam into the other car, halting both of them in their tracks and leaving him alone with the van. He couldn’t help but smile, but he had to remain focused.  
  
“Oracle, call GCPD on my position!” Tim announced as the van skidded and turned sharply, forcing him to turn after it.  
  
“ _On it,_ ” Oracle replied immediately. “ _Two squad cars are en route._ ”  
  
“Any luck on finding Crane?” Red Robin ducked as a few bullets struck his windshield, cracking it slightly.  
  
“ _Still working on it. His signal is bouncing around all of the bombs’ transmitters. Disable them, and you should be able to find him._ ” Red Robin nodded at the information.  
  
“Understood.” He sped ever closer to the van, which began swerving to the left and right in an attempt to shake him off. In the distance, he could hear a few gunshots sound off, and from what he could tell they were getting closer.  
  
“Spoiler, what’s your location!”  
  
“ _Hold on a sec!_ ” Spoiler shouted. A moment later, a loud explosion and screeching tires sounded off in the background, and Spoiler grunted. “ _Okay, all good. Just me and the van now, about a mile from your position._ ”  
  
“Perfect. Spoiler, lead them to the intersection up ahead!”  
  
“ _On it!_ ” Spoiler announced and was followed by a screeching of tires. Narrowing his eyes, Red Robin sped towards the back of the van and stood up on top of the seat. As the cycle moved closer, he leaped forward and grabbed hold of the van’s back hatch, a loud clang announcing his presence that was followed by the sound of his cycle automatically braking to a stop. Leaning down but careful to keep his hold, he began to kick at the lock. After a few heavy blows, the metal attachment broke off of its hinge and tumbled down the street, allowing him to hoist the door open. He was immediately met with a barrage of gunfire, forcing him to throw himself onto the roof of the vehicle to dodge it. More shots followed after him through the top of the compartment as he backed up along the van’s roof before hurling himself to the side. As he descended, he grabbed his staff and stabbed it through the side of the van. Keeping his momentum going, he swung to the open hatch door and grabbed hold of it, using it to pivot himself into the van and kick one of Scarecrow’s men in the chest.  
  
Reacting immediately, the other two gunmen in the van attempted to pull out their sidearms and shoot him, only for Red Robin to vault over the bomb and kick one in the head straight into the van’s side, knocking him out instantly. The other got off a few shots, only for them to bounce off of Red Robin’s armor, allowing him to close the distance and pummel him in the face relentlessly. After a few blows, he slumped to the ground unconscious.  
  
“The van is secure,” Red Robin revealed as he walked to the stabbed portion of his staff and grabbed hold of it. The staff then collapsed into the end he was holding, allowing him to bring it inside. Walking over to the monitor and pulling out his decryption device, he knelt down and began decrypting the password. After a few moments, the monitor flashed green and granted him access, allowing him to disarm the bomb and transmit the relevant information to both Oracle and the Watchtower.  
  
“Second bomb is disarmed, proceeding to removal.” Red Robin proceeded to aim his staff at the bottom of the bomb and extended it, the back end pushing into the front of the van and sliding the bomb slightly. Pushing with all his might, the bomb inched closer and closer to the open door before finally falling out of it, skidding along the pavement with a shower of sparks.  
  
“Hey, what was that?!” the driver yelled out in confusion. Taking that as his cue to leave, Red Robin pressed a button on his gauntlet and summoned his motorcycle to him, which appeared after a few moments. He leaped onto it without issue, twisting himself in mid-air to land on it correctly then slammed on the brakes, skidding to a hard stop. The van continued on without him, seemingly obvious to the loss of its cargo.  
  
“And three…two…one…” Red Robin counted down. As he finished, the second van slammed into the first from the side, pushing it off of its wheels and sending broken glass everywhere. A moment later, Spoiler, still wearing her purple armored cloak but with a few more bullet dents in it than before, got out of the driver’s seat and walked over to her fellow vigilante.  
  
“Have to say, that worked out quite well,” she declared as she tossed Tim a pair of handcuffs, who proceeded to hoist the groaning driver of the first van out of his seat and cuff him to a light pole. Nodding at the action, she brought her hand to her ear and began to speak once again. “Both bombs are secure and disarmed. Ready for extraction.”  
  
“ _Got it, dispatching a GCPD airship and squad car now,_ ” Weiss’ voice cut into the channel. “ _I need one of you to get a sample of the gas, one not contaminated by the outside air._ ”  
  
“May I ask why?” Red Robin asked as he walked towards the nearest bomb and pulled out an apparatus.  
  
“ _Mr. Terrific and J’onn J’onzz requested a sample for the antidote,_ ” Weiss revealed. “ _There should be a valve on the left side of the bomb._ ”  
  
“I see it.” Red Robin knelt down to the valve in question and attached the apparatus to it. “Attached.”  
  
“ _Allow me,_ ” Weiss said as he could hear the sounds of keys being pressed. A moment later, a sound emitted from the bomb as orange gas began to pour into the attached device, shutting off a moment later. “ _Done, information coming in now. Let’s see here… Gods above, what is in this stuff?_ ”  
  
“Hell if I know.” Red Robin regretfully sighed. “Can you make an antidote?”  
  
“ _Yes, it’s being worked on now, but… Look at it. What kind of deranged mind would come up with this?_ ”  
  
“One who has a sick mind to begin with,” Spoiler answered. “Keep us posted, Watchtower.”  
  
“ _I… Understood. Watchtower out.”_ The radio clicked off and the two teenagers looked at each other.  
  
“I don’t think she’s ever seen a chemical weapon before, maybe not even heard of one,” Spoiler noted, and Red Robin slowly nodded in affirmation. “Just her luck that she sees one of the worst ever made.”  
  
“My thoughts exactly.” Red Robin then pulled out his grapple gun, as did Spoiler. “By the way, sorry about date night.”  
  
“Oh, so _now_ you bring it up?” Spoiler smiled as the two of them zipped away. “Don’t worry, beating up psychopaths is a great alternative to a movie.” Red Robin smiled at her answer as they glided across Gotham City, straight towards the epicenter of the attack.

* * *

A mother, cradling her child, ran through the streets of a Gotham City quickly descending into chaos. She couldn’t help but admit to herself that, with all the psychopathic supervillains that call her city home, she had a lot of practice in this area. Too much practice, in fact. She would have moved if she could, but with a baby to take care of on a minimum wage job, her options were limited.  
  
“Waagh!” her baby wailed as she ducked into an alleyway. Around her, people screamed at everything in sight, while a few began attacking what they undoubtedly saw as terrifying monsters. She thanked every god who would listen that she had enough time to wrap a wet towel around her and her child’s mouths, meaning that the worst of the toxin’s effects were avoided. Still, she was experiencing mild hallucinations, but not enough to completely lose her mind. She could only pray that it would be enough to keep the same from happening to her more vulnerable child.  
  
“Sssh, sssh, it’s okay,” she soothed and rocked him side to side, hoping to calm him down while she herself stared with fear filled eyes as a group of people beat each other senseless. Her eyes then widened as she realized she recognized them. They were her neighbors, people that she had known for years to be great people. One of them even invited her and the baby to a barbeque just last week, and now they were beating each other like the others were monsters crawling out of their closet.  
  
“Have to get out of here…” she muttered as she saw her chance and took it, running across the street and away from the chaos. Catching her breath momentarily, she continued running as fast as her legs could carry her, making sure to sooth the baby whenever she could. If she could just get away from the epicenter, towards the GCPD building, they would be safe.  
  
Suddenly and without warning, a white van flanked by two black sedans slammed to a stop in the street in front of her. Men wearing burlap sacks and armor then got out of the vehicles, and to her horror she realized they were all armed. Quickly, she hid herself behind a dumpster and waited, her heart pounding in her chest as she forced herself to slow her breathing.  
  
“Get the bomb inside, hurry!” one of the masked men yelled as something heavy was hauled out of the van. Peeking around the corner, she saw a white cylindrical object resting on the pavement while the men hefted it towards an abandoned tenement. “Hurry up! We don’t have much time!”  
  
“Don’t yell at me!” a man hefting the bomb retorted, his other arm holding his rifle out near his hip. She could see his finger tapping along the trigger guard, and she could imagine why that was the case. Then, a few screams broke out as a couple people ran out of an alley near them, shouting in fright but going stiff as they saw the men in front of them. Angrily, one of them aimed his rifle upwards and began to fire, frightening them off and forcing her to bite her tongue, preventing herself from screaming out. She prayed that her baby would remain quiet while she kept soothing it.  
  
“I thought you said this place was secure?!” another man yelled out angrily.  
  
“God dammit!” the man she assumed to be in charge cursed. He fumbled with the lock and jumbled it, trying to pry it loose but finding it jammed. “Screw it! Put the bomb down here, we’re setting it off now.”  
  
“But Paul, Scarecrow said…!”  
  
“I know what he said!” Paul yelled and interrupted the man. “I also know that the Bat is on his way here, and if we don’t set it off now, nothing is going to happen! Crane’s going to have to deal with it!” He snapped his fingers and at once the bomb was gently lowered to the ground. Another man strapped his rifle to his back and began typing away at a monitor while the others took position around it. Silently she watched until one man suddenly looked her way, forcing her to duck behind the dumpster again. After a few moments, she allowed herself to breath and look again, only to suddenly see the mask of one of the gunmen staring right into her.  
  
“Hello there,” he said, an unsettling tone to her voice. The mother screamed and attempted to flee, only for the man to strike her with his rifle, knocking her onto her back. Although the baby was still tucked into her arms, the jarring impact startled him, and he began to wail.  
  
“Is that a baby?!” one of the men asked as he and the others turned towards her. The man over her nodded, keeping his rifle trained on her.  
  
“Yep, a mother and her child,” he replied. “Paul, what should we do with her?”  
  
“Does it look like I care? Just get her out of here,” Paul shot back while he continued to type away at the monitor. Her assaulter shrugged and clicked his safety off, aiming at her head.  
  
“Sorry, lady. Nothing personal,” he softly stated while slowly squeezing the trigger.  
  
“No, wait!” she shouted, holding her hand in front of her in a feeble attempt to protect herself, only for a shot to fire out. A splatter of blood shot across her face and she squeezed her eyes shut in anticipation of a burning pain. A few moments later, she realized she wasn’t feeling any pain at all, and when she finally opened her eyes, she saw the man laying dead in front of her, a fresh bullet hole in his skull.  
  
“Stay down and get out of sight.” She gasped and turned to face the source of the voice. She saw a black armored man wearing a brown leather coat, holding a smoking pistol in his right hand. Emblazoned on his chest was a red bat, and covering his face was a featureless red helmet with black eyes.  
  
“Oh, shit! It’s Red Hood!” one of Scarecrow’s goons called out as the criminals raised their weapons to fire, only for Red Hood to whip out his other pistol and start firing. One of the men went down immediately, forcing the others to take cover from the barrage of heavy fire.  
  
“Get out of here!” Red Hood, known to his family as Jason Todd, ordered as he kept up his fire. Nodding at him, the mother picked herself up and ran off into the night, away from the violence behind her. Once she was fully out of the line of fire, only then did Red Hood allow himself to break into cover and reload, at which point the gunmen opened fire on his position.  
  
“Kill his ass!” a man shouted as he sprayed Red Hood’s position with fully automatic gunfire, only for his weapon to click empty. Pausing to reload, he was unable to react in time for Red Hood to briefly break cover and fire a shot. He fell to the ground, howling in pain while clutching what was left of his hand.  
  
“Anytime now,” Red Hood calmly spoke as he combined his pistols into a rifle. Flipping the switch to fully automatic, he broke cover and began a sprinting fire towards another covered position, forcing Scarecrow’s goons to take cover themselves. Halfway there, he abruptly stopped and fired a grappling gun at a nearby building, taking him above the bomb and out of their line of sight. For a moment, the criminals were confused, which was all the time he needed to casually drop a flashbang grenade among them.  
  
“Gaagh!” the criminals below yelled and clutched their eyes and ears, leaving them defenseless as a young girl, clad in a black and yellow-trimmed batsuit with a yellow outline of a bat on her chest jumped from above and pinned a man to the ground. A thick yellow utility belt was wrapped around her waist, and a yellow rebreather mask was outfitted to her cowl. Despite not being able to see any part of her face, Red Hood recognized her as Cassandra Cain, the second Batgirl.  
  
“Batgirl’s here, too?!” another man yelled as he raised his rifle to fire, only for Batgirl to throw a batarang at his hand, forcing him to drop it. A shot rang out from the dropped weapon, striking a man in the leg and causing him to fall. Taking advantage of the situation, Batgirl leaped onto a man and grabbed his shoulders, hoisted herself over him to land on her feet and used her momentum to throw him over her body and onto the pavement, knocking him out instantly.  
  
As the other criminals regained their wits, Red Hood shot a grapnel at a man’s thigh and hoisted him upwards. As he howled in pain, Red Hood leapt down and used him as a counterweight to swing like a pendulum and kick another man in the chest, knocking him back several feet and shattering a wooden crate. Pulling out his pistols, he prepared to flick off the safeties, only to see a disapproving shake of Batgirl’s head.  
  
“Ugh, fine,” Red Hood grunted as he kept the safeties on and flipped the pistols in his hands. Now holding the barrels, he began swinging them like clubs, striking any criminal in his warpath. One man tried to punch him, only for Red Hood to grab his arm and twist it before swinging his pistol down onto the elbow, breaking it. As the man screamed, Red Hood then ripped the gas mask off his face, exposing the criminal to the fear toxin and making him collapse into hysteria. Grunting to himself in satisfaction, Red Hood continued his assault, wailing on another criminal with unmatched brutality.  
  
Batgirl’s attacks, in contrast, were like watching a ballerina. She danced between everyone attacking her, gracefully bobbing, weaving, and jumping over any attacks that came her way. Reading her opponent’s movements at an instant, she would react preemptively, doing whatever needed to be done to ensure that while her opponent’s attacks failed to land, hers did not. Between every dodge, she would lash out with light punches, jabs, and kicks, and already her opponents sported many nasty bruises.  
  
Narrowing her eyes, Batgirl decided to end this and jumped upwards over a clumsy kick and kneed a man in the jaw, snapping his head back and knocking him out. As his body fell, she kicked off of it and used him as a springboard, leaping towards another man on the opposite side of him. Throwing a pair of batarangs at separate attackers, she latched onto his shoulders and twisted herself around his neck and closed them tightly. He tried to pry his way out, only for Batgirl to tighten her grip and put him into a sleeper hold. After a few moments, he gave way to unconsciousness and she leaped off of him while the last two criminals moved to attack. Before they could take a step, two shots rang out and hit their legs, downing them both as they clutched their wounds.  
  
“Wasn’t me,” Red Hood immediately spoke up as he finished walloping a criminal across the face. Batgirl continued to stare at him before turning her head to see a woman walking up to them. She was wearing a batsuit similar to her own, although the woman in front of them was far older, the yellow was replaced with red, and long red hair flowed out of her cowl. Like the others, except for Red Hood’s built in rebreather in his helmet, a red rebreather mask covered her face.  
  
“Finished yours already?” Red Hood greeted Kathy Kane, the Batwoman.  
  
“Sorry I’m late,” Batwoman said as she holstered her pistol. “Took care of another bomb in the Narrows. That should leave just two.”  
  
“ _Nightwing is already on scene and is about to disarm the one in the Financial District, while Batman and Robin are in pursuit of the last one,_ ” Jaune called out over the radio.  
  
“None of that matters if we don’t find Crane,” Red Hood angrily pointed out. “Do you or Oracle have any leads as to where the hell he is?”  
  
“ _We’re still triangulating his position. We think that he’s located somewhere in the Bowery, as his signal seems to be bouncing around that area. Recommend you three meet up with Red Robin and Spoiler there,_ ” Oracle recommended.  
  
“Finally,” Red Hood said with a nod. “Red, Spoiler, we’ll meet you two there.”  
  
“ _Got it,_ ” Red Robin’s voice cut in. “ _We’ll be there._ ”  
  
Nodding to himself, Red Hood cut off the radio and turned to the others. As Batwoman moved to disarm the bomb, a muffled movement caught his attention, and with a grimace he realized it was the man he had shot in the hand earlier. Walking up to him, he realized it was the supposed leader of this particular outfit, the same man who callously allowed one of his men to try to execute an innocent mother and child. With a scowl Red Hood pulled out his pistol and aimed it at the downed man.  
  
‘No, please…” the criminal begged for his life, clutching his stump of a hand. He was met only with the sound of the safety being flicked off and the hammer being pulled. Before he could fire, he felt a gentle weight on his arm, and from the corner of his eye he saw Batgirl staring at him. She said nothing, but he understood her intent.  
  
“Why?” he asked, his sights never leaving the man’s skull. “Why should he get to live when he and others like him have ruined thousands of lives tonight? A man so apathetic to others that he’s willing to let a mother and child die is just as bad as the man who tried to kill them.”  
  
Batgirl continued to stare at Red Hood, slowly shaking her head. Her eyes bored into his, telling him to spare the criminal’s life and not cross the line between defense and murder. After what felt like an eternity and with an angry grunt, he clicked the safety on and holstered his pistol. He then proceeded to kick the downed criminal in the head, knocking him out cold.  
  
“What?” he asked without an ounce of shame as the other two glared at him. “He’s not dead. It’s called compromise.”  
  
Batwoman sighed then fully shut off the bomb, transmitting the data to both Oracle and the Watchtower once she was done. The three then pulled out first aid and cuffs and prepared the criminals for the GCPD, as well as any medical attention they might require. By the time the police arrived, they were long gone.

* * *

Overlooking the construction site, Nightwing, otherwise known as Dick Grayson, silently watched the men toil away at the bomb. They had already received word that the other bombers had been apprehended, both from intercepted police reports as well as a distinct lack of communication from them. As such, they were on high alert, snipers and riflemen taking up positions along every line of sight around the bomb itself.  
  
“Looks like they already armed it,” he grimly noticed through his mask’s optics, zooming in on the monitor. A timer displaying ten minutes was on its top right corner, and his scowl deepened. It wasn’t a lot of time to take out ten heavily armed and alert men, but it would have to do.  
  
Pulling out his grapple gun, Nightwing silently zipped to a nearby steel beam and crept along its upper ridge. Years of training, both with his family and under Batman’s wing, made his steps silent and masked his approach to one of the snipers.  
  
“You guys see anything?” one of the men nervously called out.  
  
“Nuthin’ yet,” another replied. “Just hope it keeps that way.”  
  
“Don’t talk like that, man!” a sniper angrily shouted. “You wanna jinx us or something!?”  
  
Nightwing smirked under his dark blue rebreather as the man fumbled for an answer. He hadn’t even shown himself yet and they were already scared, something that his optics picked up on. All of them sported elevated heartrates indicative of nervousness. Stopping over a sniper, Nightwing moved his gaze over the rest of the goons below him and waited for an opening. After a few moments, a head briefly turned and left the criminal below him out of sight, allowing Nightwing to pounce. He zipped down to the criminal and grabbed his shoulders before hoisting the startled man upwards. Holding him aloft, he attached a line to the steel beam they were on before dropping him.  
  
“Aagh!” the criminal screamed as he fell before jerking to a stop above the ground, the force ripping the rifle from his hands. Nightwing watched as his screams attracted the other men, and a few quickly ran over to the dangling man.  
  
“What the hell happened?!” one asked as he looked the man over.  
  
“I don’t know!” he replied. “Get me down, man!”  
  
“Hold still, let me think of something!”  
  
As the men worked to try and figure out a way to get their comrade down safely, their heartrates slowly elevating, Nightwing continued on. Seeing a man isolated, he zipped above him and repeated the same process as before, leaving yet another criminal dangling from the rafters. Once again, his screams attracted yet more attention, but now eyes were on the rafters themselves.  
  
“Ah, shit! One of ‘em’s here above us!” the apparent head of the operation announced, his rifle trained on the steel beams. Nightwing’s optics picked up red laser sights emitting from underneath the barrels, several scanning the rafters and trying to find him. While his armor was good, it wasn’t meant to take sustained fire, and so Nightwing shifted tactics. Quietly, he dropped down and crouched behind a pillar, trying to find a place to pick another off. When he saw an underlying grate, he silently moved towards it and placed himself inside, revealing a small drainage network under the floor.  
  
“I don’t see anything!”  
  
“Keep lookin’! He’s here!”  
  
Nightwing continued underneath the floor towards the feet of a gunman, seeing how his attention was focused elsewhere. Seizing his chance, the vigilante sprung from underneath the floors and onto the man above, pinning him to the ground with a loud clang. As the man struggled, Nightwing twirled one of his batons around and smacked him in the back of the head, knocking the man out instantly. Before the rest of the criminals could get to their fallen comrade, Nightwing was already down.  
  
“Goddammit! Somebody find this son of a bitch!”  
  
Moving to the other end of the tunnel network, Nightwing saw yet another isolated man, his heartrate quickly accelerating, and leaped up at him and threw him against a wall. Before he could move back down to the grates below, one of the men saw him and raised his rifle with a shout.  
  
“It’s Nightwing!” he announced with a spray of fire, forcing Nightwing to zip away to safety, a few bullets pinging against his armor. The bullet spray followed after him, forcing him to zip between many different angles to evade, and after several more passes finally managed to do so. Grimacing, Nightwing noticed how the timer was now at six minutes, and there were still six more men he had to take down. He could probably disarm the bomb in a minute, but he didn’t want to leave things to chance, so he would have to take down six men in four minutes.  
  
‘ _Well, no one said this job is easy,_ ’ he thought to himself as he moved down below once more. Seeing a partially destroyed wall, Nightwing pulled out a can of explosive gel and sprayed his logo onto it, a bird shaped like a V, and placed a device next to it. Zipping away again, he activated the device, creating a loud ringing noise that attracted a man towards it.  
  
“What the…?” he mumbled as he edged closer to the source of the sound, his rifle trained on the wall. Once the gunman entered the effective radius, Nightwing detonated the gel, sending a barrage of broken concrete forward and striking the startled thug, sending him to the ground writhing in pain. Picking up on his angle, the men refused to come to his aid and stayed where they were, but Nightwing was already on the move.  
  
Leaping off the side of the building, he extended his arms and deployed his wingsuit, gliding around the building’s edge for an open window then grappled towards it, ending up behind a now terrified man and quickly putting him in a sleeper hold. Once he was unconscious, Nightwing zipped away once more and moved towards the next thug, the man now shakily moving his rifle back and forth. Once his back was turned, Nightwing pounced down upon him and threw him to the ground, kicking away his rifle and striking his forehead with his baton, knocking him out. Looking at the remaining time, Nightwing’s scowl deepened at the four-thirty that was quickly dropping down. Stealth was no longer an option.  
  
“There he is! Get him!” a man called out as he raised his rifle, only for Nightwing to pull out a wing-ding and throw it at them. The wing-ding arced across the rifles, knocking them out of the gunmen’s hands and leaving them disarmed.  
  
“Well, I’m here,” Nightwing declared as he fully extended his batons, the ends sparking with electricity. “How about we make this easy and you guys just surrender and let me disarm the bomb?”  
  
“Fat chance, creep!” one of the three declared as they charged him, and Nightwing sighed.  
  
“Don’t say I didn’t try to make it easy for you guys,” Nightwing said as he flipped over them. Their backs turned towards him, he swung his batons in a pincer, striking the men with the electrified ends and shocking all of them. They spasmed as electricity flowed through them, but the burliest one of them was able to recover and press on. He threw a punch at Nightwing, who nimbly twisted his body around it and retaliated with a jab to the face. Disoriented and clutching his nose, the thug was unable to stop as Nightwing began a relentless assault against him, striking him repeatedly. Each blow rang out across the construction site, only to stop as the man recovered his wits and grabbed the batons. He then hurled the vigilante to the ground and made to curb-stomp Nightwing’s head, but the vigilante rolled out of the way just in time. At the end of his roll, he spring-boarded off the ground and onto his feet, grimacing that his batons were now several feet away from him.  
  
“Ya think you can make a fool outta me!?” the man yelled out while pumping his fists.  
  
“Buddy, you don’t need me to do that for you,” Nightwing quipped, enraging the criminal and making him charge. As he did, Nightwing vaulted over him and kicked his back, stumbling him slightly. As he recovered, he clasped his hands together and swung them like a hammer, striking Nightwing in the face and sending him flying into a wall. Rubbing his jaw, Nightwing noticed he was next to an junction box, and an idea sprung to his head just as the thug charged him.  
  
‘ _Have to time this just right_ ,’ he thought and waited against the wall. Just as the man cleared the proper distance, Nightwing moved, kicking off of the wall and into the man's chest. Not expecting the attack, he was helpless as Nightwing pounded his head repeatedly before grabbing his shoulders tightly. Nightwing swung the man around in a circle before releasing him headfirst into the junction box. Sparks flew out as the man screamed in agony, electricity flowing through his body before Nightwing grappled him off of it. The man was unresponsive, and a quick look through his optics confirmed that the man was alive, albeit unconscious. He’d live, and that was more than enough for the vigilante. Nodding to himself, he turned to run over to the bomb when the sound of breaking glass caught his attention, and he quickly turned around with a wing-ding in hand at the source. It was one of the men he thought was already unconscious, clutching his head tightly and shakily aiming his rifle at Nightwing with one arm.  
  
“You bastard…” he spat through gritted teeth, struggling to pull the trigger. Nightwing merely sighed in response then threw his wing-ding at the man's head, knocking him out instantly.  
  
“Note to self, be more thorough next time,” he mumbled as he zipped over the bomb itself. Glancing at the timer, he winced as he saw a minute and thirty seconds left before detonation. “Oracle, I’m at the bomb! How do I disarm this thing?!”  
  
“ _Working on it!_ ” Oracle frantically called out as she typed away at her keyboard. “ _Okay, transmitting the disarming code to you now. Input it into the computer, and it should give you access._ ”  
  
“On it,” Nightwing replied as the long code flashed across his optics. Racing against the clock, he inputted each character into the keyboard, being sure not to make a mistake. The clock ticking down past the minute sign, beads of sweat started appearing on his brow as he continued typing away.  
  
“ _Nightwing, hurry!_ ” Oracle pleaded.  
  
“I know!” Thirty seconds were left, and time seemed to slow down. Each keystroke seemed to take an hour, but he pressed on. Finally, he entered the last key and submitted the code. “Got it!”  
  
He stepped back as the bomb shuddered. For a moment, he was afraid that it would go off, but to his relief nothing happened. There were five seconds left on the timer, and Dick let out a sigh of relief.  
  
“That was close,” he said while wiping his forehead. “Okay, everything good on my end. Contact GCPD for pickup.”  
  
“ _On it._ ” Oracle’s relief was audible, and Nightwing couldn’t blame her. Taking a moment to catch his breath, he watched as a GCPD airship made its way over to him, spotlights beaming down on the chaotic city below. Memories began to surface as he looked across Gotham. It had been quite some time since he’d last stepped foot in this city, having since moved on to Blüdhaven on his own and Jump City with the Titans, but it was Gotham where he got his start. It was where his family died, only to make a new one with Bruce, Alfred, and Barbara. He had nothing but fond memories of Alfred Pennyworth and Barbara Gordon, but he had to admit that his relationship with Bruce was, and is, at times tense. Still, the man was a father to him, one of the greatest men he had ever known and worthy of his respect.  
  
“ _Batman to all teams._ ” Batman’s voice suddenly cut into the radio, breaking Nightwing out of his thoughts. Internally, he found it ironic that he could announce himself just as he was thinking about him, but he pushed it aside. “ _Robin and I are on the last bomb, Rendezvous on our position._ ”  
  
“On it. Nightwing out,” Nightwing declared as he leaped off the building and extended his wingsuit.

* * *

“Speed up, man! He’s gaining on us!”  
  
“Shut up and let me drive!”  
  
“I can’t go back to jail!”  
  
Over the radio, Batman and Robin heard the criminals panic as they raced after them in the Batmobile. Despite their best attempts at shaking him and his latest protégé, they were proving to be in vain. Pulling up alongside one of the sedans, through the windows of which the gangsters were firing uselessly at the them, Batman sharply cut to the left, impacting the right rear tire of the vehicle. The impact caused the car to rotate to the right, forcing them to be sideswiped by the Batmobile’s front end and dragged along. A shower of sparks barely masked their terrified screams, and with a groan, Robin pressed a button on his control panel. The Batmobile’s front then split sideways, shearing the car in half and leaving the two halves behind them.  
  
“ _GCPD en route for pickup,_ ” Pyrrha declared as the still alive criminals sat numbly in their seats. “ _Batman, may I say something?_ ”  
  
“Proceed,” Batman replied as the back of the van opened up, revealing a man wielding a minigun. He fired it at them, the high-velocity rounds bouncing off of the Batmobile’s armor.  
  
“ _All of this seems off to me,_ ” she elaborated. “ _It’s too easy, and the others feel the same._ ”  
  
“You think it’s a diversion?” Batman calmly asked as he fired a rubber bullet from the Batmobile’s main cannon, striking the minigun-wielding thug in the chest and shooting him straight back into the front end of the van.  
  
“ _Possibly, we don’t really know,_ ” Ren pointed out. “ _Even after all the other bombs have been defused, Crane’s position is still bouncing around everywhere, almost as if there’s something interfering with it._ ”  
  
“ _I’ve noticed that, too_ ,” Oracle said. “ _It’s not electronic, but more physical interference. Something big is blocking his signal from getting out_.”  
  
“ _Plus, the amount of material in the bombs are no where near big enough to affect the entire city,_ ” Weiss announced. “ _Only enough for a few city blocks, unlike the first one he detonated. If I were a betting woman, I would say that Crane likely has a bigger bomb hidden somewhere and that the ones you have been going after are merely diversions while he sets that one up._ ”  
  
Batman hummed to himself as he rammed the other sedan to the side, forcing it to crash into a parked car and stop in its tracks. As the man stumbled out of the wrecked vehicle, Robin already dialed the position to the GCPD.  
  
“I agree with all of you, and I’ve been suspecting the same thing,” the Dark Knight announced as the van swerved down a tight alley, the Batmobile following straight behind it. “Were you able to find a general area where he is?”  
  
“ _Uh, maybe,_ ” Jaune replied, his voice uncertain. Batman suspected it had much to do with the shock of seeing Scarecrow’s fear gas in action. “ _The signal seems to be concentrated, faint as it is, in the Narrows._ ”  
  
“ _Isn’t that where Gotham’s main water distribution system is?_ ” Red Hood pointed out, alarm in his voice. Batman’s eyes widened slightly as he realized that was the case.  
  
“He’s in the sewers,” Batman realized as looked towards Robin, giving him a silent command. Acknowledging it, Robin unstrapped himself from his seat and began pressing a few buttons on the control panel. “There’s a water main access pipe there. If he gets his fear toxin into it, he can infect the entire city instantly.”  
  
“ _Already en route,_ ” Nightwing declared, and Batman nodded.  
  
“We’ll be with you shortly.” At that, Batman turned off the radio and turned his head to look at his son, who nodded in acceptance. “You take the drivers, I’ll take the back.”  
  
“Got it.” Robin nodded, and Batman slammed on the brakes, halting the Batmobile in its tracks. At the same time, he unstrapped himself and had the canopy open wide, throwing the Dynamic Duo out of their seats and straight towards the white van and past it. Extending their capes, they slowed their descent until the van was right below them and dropped, landing on its roof with a loud thud. Immediately gunfire rang out from below, puncturing the roof of the vehicle while the two moved in opposite directions.  
  
Pulling out his sword, Robin swung the point at the passenger window and shattered it, then swung himself feet first into the passenger himself and landed between him and the driver. While the driver continued to keep his attention on the road, Robin wrestled with the passenger, forcing the man’s pistol away as he fired it. The gunshots rang out through the cabin, making his ears ring and puncturing holes in the roof, but Robin persevered. Ripping it out of the man’s hands, he threw it out of the van just as the passenger pulled out a knife and moved to stab the Boy Wonder. Expertly, Robin grabbed the arm and ripped the knife away, only to stab it into the man’s shoulder.  
  
“AAGH!” he screamed and clutched at the weapon while Robin turned his attention to the driver to punch him across the jaw. Disoriented, the man was helpless as Robin slammed his head against the steering wheel repeatedly until the eyes of his mask shattered, letting the toxic fumes seep into his mask. The man began to scream at unseen horrors, only to be silenced with a final punch to the temple, knocking him out. He then threw a device onto the steering wheel, one meant to serve as an automatic steering system and prevent it from veering off course.  
  
“You bastard!” the passenger shouted as he pulled the knife out of his shoulder and tried to stab him yet again. Without missing a beat, Robin kicked the man in the wounded shoulder, causing him to clutch the wounded area in pain and allowing Robin the chance to shift the vehicle into neutral. As the van slowly decelerated, he became aware of the shouts coming from the back of the van, and he smiled at the knowledge that his father was easily winning. He then turned his attention back to the passenger and clambered over to him, where he proceeded to repeatedly punch him in the face.  
  
“I’m not a bastard,” he declared as he continued to wallop the criminal, only pausing to grasp his collar and bring him close. “I’m the son of the Batman.” The criminal tried to throw a punch, only for Damian Wayne to grab his wrist and twist it sharply, breaking it. Damian then retaliated with a final punch, knocking the man out.  
  
“And don’t you forget it,” Damian hissed as he moved back to the driver’s seat. Nonchalantly sitting across the unconscious driver’s lap, he gently moved it to a stop. Once it did, he swung his sword upwards and chopped off the steering wheel, preventing the criminals from even trying to drive off again, then cuffed them to their respective doors.  
  
“Father, everything good on your end?” Robin asked as he climbed out of the vehicle. He was answered by a thug being violently thrown out of the van and onto the street, out cold. Nodding to himself, Robin calmly walked over to his father and watched as Batman held a man by the throat with one arm. A glance told Damian that the bomb was already disarmed, and so he made no move to intervene.  
  
“Please don’t hurt me,” the thug whimpered, and Batman shook his head.  
  
“No.” The Dark Knight then punched the man across the jaw, knocking him out cold. When Batman finally dropped him, he crumpled to the floor and made no move to resist Batman cuffing him to the bumper.  
  
“Did you get what you need?” Damian asked as Batman summoned the Batmobile to their location. As the vehicle pulled in, Batman pulled out a chip and inserted it into his cowl.  
  
“Tracker, compiled from data from the other bombs,” Batman answered the unasked question. “Should allow us to find Crane once we enter the sewers. Oracle and the Watchtower’s assistance would be limited in there.”  
  
“Make sense,” Damian replied as he and his father entered the armored car. In the distance, he could hear the sound of police sirens zeroing in on their location while they themselves sped off towards the Narrows. As they sped through the city, carefully avoiding the crowds of panicking civilians, Damian scowled at the damage Crane wrought upon his city and gingerly touching the hilt of his sword.  
  
“Damian,” Batman’s voice suddenly cut in, and Damian sighed.  
  
“I know, Father,” Damian replied. “But, seeing all of this… It’s hard.”  
  
A long pause ensued between the two of them, ending with a resigned sigh. “I know.”  
  
The two continued down the road in silence, police cars screaming past them with their sirens blaring. A few shots could be heard, but they reluctantly paid it no heed as they drove into the Narrows. The Batmobile’s HUD highlighted the other vigilantes’ presence. They were already in the sewers, and Batman immediately drove towards a large open pipe, one wide enough to drive through.  
  
“ _Just a heads up, reception’s going to get spotty in a bit,_ ” Yang declared over the radio. “ _Stay safe down there._ ”  
  
“We will.” Batman’s response was curt as he exited the vehicle. “How’s the antidote coming along?”  
  
“ _Quite nicely, actually. J’onn and Mr. Terrific are miracle workers. Should be ready soon._ ”  
  
“Understood.” Clicking off his radio, Batman and Robin looked at each other before heading into the sewers, disappearing completely into the dark.

* * *

“Well, we’ve officially lost contact with them,” Yang declared as she watched the signal disappear from the monitor. Leaning back in her chair, she took a moment to stretch out her arms, thankful that she was able to perform this action while dressed in her sleepwear. They might not have been what she wore at Beacon, but they were close enough to match. At the very least, she no longer had to withstand the sight of Jaune’s Pumpkin Pete onesie, although he himself was devastated. Weiss was currently watching videos of Gotham’s streets, and Yang arched her eyebrow.  
  
“Weiss, mind showing us what you’re looking at?” she asked, breaking the heiress out of her concentration. Shock and horror was evident on her face, something that Yang didn’t blame her for. They all saw what Scarecrow’s gas did to people.  
  
“I…okay.” Weiss sighed and did as requested, moving an amalgamation of different views onto the larger screen above them. They watched as overworked police officers and SWAT members tried to restore a semblance of order to their city while terrified civilians either ran away from anything they saw or, even worse, attacked each other. “Gods, this is terrible.”  
  
“I don’t think even the White Fang would have done something like this,” Blake muttered, her ears dropped to her head. “Why would anyone make something like this?”  
  
“I don’t know. I honestly don’t know,” Weiss answered with a shudder. They all stared in silence at what they were seeing, forcing themselves to not look away. In their minds, they needed to see this. Jaune then developed a look of horrified realization on his face, and his body shuddered.  
  
“Jaune, what’s wrong?” Pyrrha asked, the awkwardness from before now completely gone. After a moment, he shook his head and looked back at his friends.  
  
“I just had a thought. Seeing all this, the fear that this stuff is inflicting, makes me _really_ happy that Earth doesn’t have Grimm.” Everyone went silent and pondered his words for a moment, then simultaneous looks of horror crossed their faces, making them shudder.  
  
“Gods, if someone had made this on Remnant…” Weiss whispered, thinking of the horrific possibilities.  
  
“Entire cities would fall overnight,” Ren finished the thought. Memories of his hometown flashed through his mind, and he clenched his fist. He then felt a hand press on it, and he looked to see a concerned Nora holding it. He relaxed and took her hand into his own, making them both faintly smile.  
  
“We should be down there,” Ruby suddenly declared. “We should be helping them, not watching from above, unable to do anything.”  
  
Jaune sighed and shook his head. “Ruby, you know what Batman and the others said. They don’t want us down there, end of story.”  
  
“You’re taking their side on this?” Yang accused, and Jaune shook his head.  
  
“No, I agree with Ruby. We should be down there, and frankly, seeing all of this and being unable to do anything about it is infuriating,” Jaune declared, his eyes showing how angry he truly was. “But, like it or not, we’re in no position to do anything about it. The only way down there is via teleporter or Javelin, and I highly doubt that anyone is going to just let us waltz on in there and help out directly.” Everyone stared at the boy before Yang sighed and crossed her arms. He was right, but that didn’t mean she liked it.  
  
“We have to do something,” Nora insisted, and Blake shook her head.  
  
“Nora, I think Jaune’s right here,” Blake said as she turned back to her individual monitor. Flashing across her screen were names and criminal records of all of Scarecrow’s goons, all of whom appeared to be career criminals. Most were former inmates at a prison in Gotham named Blackgate Penitentiary, repeated inmates at that. Crane pulled from a wide selection pool for this job, with the arrested ranging from arsonists and thieves to murderers and simple thugs. She wasn’t overly concerned with that, however. What she was most concerned with was how they got their equipment.  
  
“Anyone know what this symbol means?” Blake asked as she pulled up an image of a man’s rifle, a symbol of a penguin attached to the side of the magazine holder. Weiss quickly wheeled around and began searching in the database before pulling it up.  
  
“I think I got it,” she replied as a picture of a portly man appeared on screen. He was wearing a thick coat with a top hat, a monocle on his face and holding a black umbrella. “Oswald Cobblepot, owner of the Iceberg Lounge as well as the largest weapons dealer on the east coast. Also known as the Penguin. Can’t imagine why…”  
  
“I’ll say. Look at his nose.” Yang snorted in obvious disgust. “Think he supplied the bombs, too?”  
  
“No, I don’t think so. Someone else did.” Weiss shook her head. “From the League’s records, I can only imagine a handful of people who could.”  
  
Two images then appeared on screen. Weiss zoomed in on the first, showing a bearded man with large mutton chops, as well as an insane look in his eye. “Ra’s al Ghul, Arabic for “the Head of the Demon”. An extreme ecoterrorist who believes that mankind is destroying all life on the planet, and as such works to prevent that. His organization, the League of Assassins, has been responsible for numerous atrocities throughout the millennia. The Black Plague, the assassination of Arch-Duke Ferdinand, the Spanish Flu, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Fire of London to name a few, all in the name of bringing humanity to a so-called ‘manageable state’, if not simply wiping everyone out.”  
  
“Guy’s a basket case,” Yang noted. “Wait hold up. It says here he’s centuries old. He only looks thirty.”  
  
“There’s something about Lazarus Pits in here,” Jaune pointed out as he focused on the section in question. “Apparently, hidden around the world are naturally occurring pits of chemicals. These chemicals can…bring people back to life? What the hell…?”  
  
“I see it, too,” Ruby declared as she pulled up a video of a pit on action. It showed Ra’s’ lifeless body being hurled by an assassin into a green pool, only for the dead man to suddenly rejuvenate and appear youthful. He also began screaming, a mad look in his eye. “They also drive a person crazy, at least temporarily.”  
  
“Geez,” Nora softly stated. “What about the next guy?” Weiss pulled up the other image, showing a sharply dressed bald man. They recognized him immediately. “Luthor.”  
  
“Based off what the League told us about him, it wouldn’t surprise me if he’s the one backing and supplying Crane,” Weiss snarled. “Everything I read about this man makes me despise him even more.”  
  
“No arguments here,” Jaune muttered before turning back towards his monitor. “I’m forwarding the data to Oracle now. She might know what to do with it better than we can.”  
  
Just then, the monitor showing Batman’s team flickered to life, attracting everyone’s attention. “Oh, hey. We can see… What the heck is that?!” Yang shouted as she and the others saw everyone but Batman fighting a massive creature. It stood on two legs and towered over everyone, his body covered in reptilian scales and his teeth sharpened into fangs. Quickly, Ren began typing away into his monitor and pulled up a match, and he began reading.  
  
“Waylon Jones, otherwise known as Killer Croc,” Ren read aloud. “Born with regressive atavism, which resulted in his body looking more and more reptilian with each passing year. He was ostracized for it and eventually embraced it, becoming what he is now. Lives in Gotham’s sewer system in complete isolation, except for when he is interred in Arkham Asylum, and is known for eating people on occasion.”  
  
“Gods above…”  
  
“ _Waylon, calm down!_ ” they heard Nightwing shout over the radio, punctured by gunshots that bounced off Killer Croc’s hide. Robin moved to stab him in the back, but the blade barely broke the skin before Waylon turned around, grabbed the boy, and threw him across the room with an animalistic roar. “ _You’re under the effects of Scarecrow’s toxin!_ ”  
  
“ _Leave! My! Home!_ ” Killer Croc roared as he charged Nightwing, ramming straight through concrete pillars like they were nothing. Nightwing rolled out of the way while throwing a pair of explosive wing-dings at the man, exploding harmlessly against his scaly skin. At the same time, Red Hood continued firing his pistols one after another, despite them doing nothing against him.  
  
“ _Dammit!_ ” he cursed before diving out of the way of a thrown chunk of concrete. “ _We have to take this guy down!”_  
  
“ _I’m trying!_ ” Batwoman replied as she fired her pistol at the man. Seeing how it was doing nothing, she holstered it and zipped away while Spoiler and Batgirl ducked underneath a swing of his arms and uppercutted him. The twin blows did nothing but leave them exposed to his grasp. He threw them up into the air then back down, knocking the air out of their lungs and leaving them exposed to an attempted stomp. Before his massive foot made contact, a flashbang was thrown into his head and exploded, causing him to stumble back and allowing the two to move to safety.  
  
“Where’s Batman?” Ruby suddenly asked, causing Nora to cycle through the feeds available to them. After a few moments, they found him, and Nora brought the feed in question on screen. He was fighting Scarecrow in a room a hundred feet from Killer Croc’s lair, a large bomb connected to a water main. To their alarm, they saw it was armed.  
  
“ _You’re too late, Batman,_ ” Scarecrow declared while throwing a hook at the vigilante. “ _In a few moments, my toxin will flood Gotham City, vaporizing and filling the air. All will know what fear truly is._ ”  
  
“ _You’re insane, Crane,_ ” Batman retorted while kicking the deranged ex-psychologist in the chest, sending him back into a railing. “ _Give it up and come quietly. No one else has to get hurt._ ”  
  
“ _On the contrary, my research depends on it._ ” Scarecrow creepily laughed, sending shivers down RWBY and JNPR’s spines.  
  
“ _Is everyone in Gotham just a guinea pig to you?_ ”  
  
“ _Yes._ ” Crane’s casual indifference shocked RWBY and JNPR to their core. Briefly, they were reminded of Brainiac’s dismissal of them, but those thoughts subsided as Batman and Scarecrow continued their fight. Turning their attention to the other fight adjacent to them, they noticed how several more concrete pillars were now completely destroyed, and a noticeable crack was appearing on the ceiling. The vigilantes were vaulting themselves above Killer Croc, and at the top of their arcs were spraying tiny amounts of gel onto the cracked ceiling, and at once the huntsmen realized what they were doing.  
  
“They’re going to bring the roof down on him,” Yang realized with an approving nod. The others nodded in appreciation as well, continuing to watch the vigilantes fight the criminals. A thought then sprang to mind, and she turned to look at Ren. “Can we talk to them?”  
  
“No,” Ren declared with a shake of his head. “We’re lucky enough to get video and audio. If we try to talk to them, then…” Just then, the audio and video cut off into static, making everyone groan. “Then we get that.”  
  
“Great, just perfect,” Nora grunted in both annoyance and concern. “What are we supposed to do now?”  
  
“Wait, I guess,” Jaune suggested, disappointment creeping into his voice. Ruby then looked at everyone, seeing the dejected look on their faces, and straightened herself.  
  
“They’ll be fine, I know it. You’ll see,” she expressed. The others nodded at her then she turned back to her station, as did the others. Seeing a blinking light, she pressed it and a video of J’onn J’onzz appeared on her monitor. “Hey, J’onn. Is the antidote ready?”  
  
“ _Yes, Ruby. Mr. Terrific and I have managed to create a viable cure,_ ” J’onn replied in his familiar monotone. Ruby couldn’t help but admit to herself that she found it kind of creepy before remembering that he could read her mind. “ _Don’t worry. I am not offended. I do need you, however, to notify the pandemic teams, put them on standby for arrival into Gotham._ ”  
  
“Will do,” Ruby stated as the monitor shut off. She then turned to the intercom and moved to press down on it, only to see Weiss already doing so.  
  
“Pandemic Teams to the teleporter bay. Pandemic teams to the teleporter bay,” she declared into the intercom. She then looked at Ruby and shrugged her shoulders.  
  
“Thanks, Weiss.”  
  
“No problem, Ruby.” Weiss turned back to her station and continued to work, but Ruby could see it was reluctant. She could see it in all of them. Despite what Jaune said to them earlier, they still wanted to be down there, wanted to help more directly. But with Batman and the League forbidding it, they couldn’t do anything. Dejected, Ruby turned her attention towards the monitor and saw the pandemic teams running towards the teleporter bay, carts of antidotes following after them. Nudging her partner, she directed Weiss' attention to what she was seeing. After a moment, Weiss' face morphed with realization.  
  
“Absolutely not.”

* * *

The GCPD building was a hive of activity as uniformed officers directed calls from panicked civilians and to the officers on the field, not to mention federal agencies. Commissioner James Gordon sighed as he rubbed the bridge of his nose, exhausted after a long night. It had started off so peacefully, too. Or as peaceful as any night in Gotham could be.  
  
“Here,” a woman suddenly announced, breaking Jim out of his thoughts. Looking to his side, he saw Detective Renee Montoya holding a steaming cup of coffee, offering another to him.  
  
“Thanks, Renee.” Gordon gratefully took the cup and sipped it, noting the bitter taste. Black, just as he liked it. “Any word from Batman?”  
  
“Nothing yet,” Renee revealed with a sigh as she sat down next to him. “Harvey is taking a couple of officers to the Narrows now. Going to try and enter the sewers and get Crane into custody _before_ Batman can get to him.”  
  
Gordon couldn’t help but laugh at that. “Bullock always did hate Batman showing him up, so I’m not surprised.” He got out of his seat and put on his coat and hat. “I’m going to the roof.”  
  
“Alright,” Renee said as the commissioner walked to the elevator. Pressing a button, he waited for a moment before the doors opened, giving him entrance. They then shut behind him and the car carried him up to the roof. As it did, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his pipe along with a lighter before finally stepping outside to the roof. Walking past the Batsignal, he was briefly reminded of how much he had used the damn thing over the last twenty years, but by now he had stopped caring. Gotham needed all the help she could get, and while at one point he would have preferred Batman working with the GCPD more directly, now he simply took what he could get. He stopped at the edge of the roof and brought his pipe to his mouth then began to light it. A small spark of flame ignited the tobacco inside its container, allowing the smoke to fill his lungs, which he then breathed out.  
  
“You know that stuff will kill you, right?” he heard someone ask, and with a faint smile he recognized her voice immediately. Turning around, he saw his daughter roll up to him in her wheelchair, the same one she had been forced to stay in for the past three years.  
  
“Barbara, what are you doing out here?” he asked as she made her way over to him, and she smiled.  
  
“Didn’t want to leave you out here alone,” Barbara Gordon revealed, stopping next to her father. The two looked out over Gotham City’s skyline, content to be silently comforted by the other. Gordon couldn’t help but glance at his daughter’s wheelchair, and his mind flashed to that horrible night three years prior. What that clown had done to her out of simple cruelty, trying to make a point about the human condition. He wouldn’t lie and say that he wouldn't have killed him then and there once he finally got freed, but he never got the chance. Batman had already gotten to him, and he’d beaten the Joker so thoroughly that the Clown Prince of Crime spent the next three months in a coma. Of course, that was nothing like when he killed the second Robin. Then he’d spent a year in a coma. But, as always, the Joker recovered, only to continue spreading chaos and murder to his city.  
  
“Dad, you’re getting angry again,” Barbara chided him, breaking him out of his thoughts.  
  
“Sorry.”  
  
“It’s okay.” Barbara smiled and took his hand. “Look, I know that you still blame yourself for what happened, but it’s okay.” Gordon moved to retort, but a stern look from his daughter silenced him, and he sighed. It wasn’t the first time they’d had this discussion, and it most certainly wouldn’t be the last, but he’d let it slide.  
  
“I’m proud of you, you know.”  
  
“I know, Dad.” Barbara smiled, thinking he was talking about how she’d risen above her paralysis. She was correct, but Gordon was proud of her for other reasons, reasons she thought he didn’t know about. He was content, however, to continue letting her think that way.  
  
“ _James_ ,” he heard Harvey Bullock’s gruffy voice over the radio, getting Gordon’s attention immediately.  
  
“Bullock, what is it?” Gordon asked over his radio while he and his daughter moved to the elevator.  
  
“ _We got ‘em_.” Gordon sighed in relief at the news, and he could hear Bullock’s relief as well. This long night was finally coming to a close.  
  
“I’ll have a cell waiting for him in the precinct,” Gordon revealed as he and Barbara entered the main room of the building.  
  
“ _Uh, about that…_ ” Harvey got out, making the commissioner sigh. Something told him he wasn’t going to enjoy that. “ _You’re gonna want to prep a special containment cell as well._ ”  
  
“Why?”  
  
“ _The Bat’s kids had to take down Killer Croc to get to Crane. On the bright side, we finally caught him._ ”  
  
Gordon sighed and pinched his nose. “I’ll send over an APC to get him. Just get Crane over here.”  
  
“ _Will do. Bullock out._ ” The radio shut off at the declaration and allowed Gordon to collapse onto his chair. Barbara wheeled next to him and nodded her head.  
  
“Anything you want me to do, Dad?”  
  
“Just…do what you need to do, Babs.” Gordon smiled at her and she did in turn. She then turned around and moved to her isolated office, the walls of which were covered in monitors she used to expertly keep track of anything the GCPD needed her to, and more. As she shut the door behind her, Gordon reminded himself of how proud of her he was, even if she didn’t know the full reason why.

* * *

When Batman and his various protégés finally entered the GCPD building, Gordon was already waiting for them in the garage, his hands tucked away in his pockets. Men and women wearing HAZMAT suits and rebreathers, each bearing the insignia of the Justice League, moved around him and carted vials of antidotes with them. Batman had seen flights of Javelins fly overhead as he made his approach, dispersing clouds of antidote to affected areas, but the more contained vials were for those most severely afflicted.  
  
“Batman,” Gordon nodded, and Batman nodded in turn. “This whole night has been a mess.”  
  
“I know, Jim,” Batman agreed with the commissioner. Behind him, he heard a police squad car pull up behind the Batmobile, out of which came Harvey Bullock and a pair of heavily armed SWAT officers. Their weapons were trained on a handcuffed Jonathan Crane, his mask off of him and revealing an unrepentant look on his smug face.  
  
“You think you’ve won, but you haven’t. I’ve already gotten the research that I needed, how to improve my formula. You can’t stop fear, Batman.”  
  
“Yeah, yeah. Tell it to the judge, you creep,” Bullock spat at the lunatic and pushed him further into the precinct. Batman watched as he disappeared into the building, his hand hovering next to a Batarang. Robin was doing the same thing, only his hand was resting on the hilt of his sword.  
  
“He’s going to be locked up in Arkham, where he belongs,” Gordon revealed and followed after them. “Jones is being airlifted to the roof now. He’ll be joining him.”  
  
“Waylon was affected with the fear toxin,” Batman pointed out. “His attacking us was not his fault.”  
  
“I know,” Gordon replied, “but the fact is he still escaped Iron Heights two months ago. He’s an escaped convict, and the law requires me to intern him.”  
  
“He only escaped because of the experiments they were doing to him,” Batman pointed out, making Gordon frown.  
  
“Don’t remind me. Ranken got life in prison for the stunt he pulled.” Gordon’s rage was palpable, and Batman couldn’t blame him. He had been the one to bring Ranken down in the first place, although he had to stop Jones from killing the former warden to do so. That fight brought down the Iron Heights airship, allowing Croc to escape in the confusion. “Why are you defending him?”  
  
“I’m not,” Batman insisted, remembering how even though Croc’s actions were justified, he still killed many people in his escape attempt. “Just asking you to take that into consideration.”  
  
“I will, don’t worry.” The two stopped as the elevator doors opened, revealing Killer Croc as he was escorted to a clear cylindrical cell on the far side of the room. Once he noticed the Dark Knight, he stopped and turned to face him, anger on his face. He didn’t say anything, however, before continuing on and getting into his cell. League workers continued to move around the building, preparing to go out into the city itself, when Gordon silently tapped Batman’s side. An obvious signal if he’d ever seen one, Batman followed his gaze to a group of eight individuals wearing HAZMAT suits clustered together, their backs turned to him. Six of them appeared to be female, while the other two were male. Even though their bodies were obscured by their suits, their nervousness was easily seen  
  
‘ _They didn’t…_ ” Batman’s eyes widened in realization, only for anger to bubble up inside of him. Taking his cue, Gordon acted and moved over to them.  
  
“Hey, quit standing around! I need you up on the roof,” he ordered them. They jumped slightly then carried out his orders, moving to the elevator far too quickly. Gordon watched as the elevator doors closed, and he turned to face the Batman and ask who they were, only to find him already gone. Used to this response, Gordon walked to the stairs and began to climb it, content to give Batman the time he needed to chew whoever those people were out.

* * *

“I’m am going to ask you this once.” Batman’s voice was chilling as he stared at the group ahead of him, his body tight and filled with irritation. “Why. Are. You. Here?”  
  
Ruby awkwardly chucked and rubbed the back of her head, her rebreather covering her embarrassed smile. They were no longer wearing the HAZMAT suits, which meant her embarrassment was no longer hidden. “Well, you see…”  
  
“We wanted to help, and with the situation contained, we thought it was a good time to come down,” Yang revealed, much more confidently than her younger sister. Batman shifted his glare to her, and she stared right back.  
  
“I specifically told you that you were not allowed to be down here. Not yet,” Batman countered, the rest of his protégés standing behind him.  
  
“I don’t see what the problem is. We’re wearing these suits and rebreathers, and Scarecrow’s locked away. We weren’t even planning on fighting anybody, just going around to help disburse the antidote,” Yang insisted, her arms crossed.  
  
“That is not the point!” Batman suddenly yelled, shocking the huntsmen. “You deliberately disobeyed a direct order, putting yourselves in danger that you are _not_ ready for, even if you think you are, and you left the monitor station empty!”  
  
“No we did not!” Nora countered. “We got someone to cover for us!”  
  
“Who?”

* * *

“Skeets, I have a question.”  
  
“Yes, Booster?”  
  
“How long does it take for eight kids to use the restroom?”  
  
“That depends. Why?”  
  
“Because,” Booster Gold replied to Skeets, throwing his arms out wide to emphasize how only he and the diminutive flying gold robot were in the monitor room, “I’m beginning to think we’ve been duped.”

* * *

“Remind me to have a chat with Booster Gold when I get back,” Batman growled and shook his head. “Regardless, you should not be down here in the first place. You are to stay right here and wait as the Watchtower teleports you back up to them.”  
  
“What? But-?” They all protested, only to be silenced with a glare. Batman stomped to the other end of the roof, already dialing the Watchtower’s teleporter bay, when his radio suddenly came to life.  
  
“ _Master Bruce, if I may?_ ” Alfred suddenly spoke, halting Batman in his tracks.  
  
“What is it, Alfred?” Batman asked, his hand hovering over the transceiver button to contact the Watchtower.  
  
“ _I’m afraid that their minds are already made up, and simply sending them back when they’ve already arrived will only be counterproductive._ ”  
  
“Are you suggesting…?”  
  
“ _Yes, actually,_ ” Alfred cut him off. “ _Need I remind you of another man who did the exact same thing when he wasn’t ready?_ ”  
  
Batman knew who he talking about, and he shook his head. “Alfred, this isn’t the same thing.”  
  
“ _Quite so Master Bruce. After all, they simply came down to assist recovery in the aftermath rather than leaping straight into battle."_ When the Dark Knight didn't dignify his butler's sass with a response, Alfred continued with his point. _"I’m not asking you to send them off to fight criminals, but surely keeping them around to help wouldn’t be all that bad._ ”  
  
“It very well can be, Alfred.”  
  
“ _As bad as implying you don’t trust them?_ ” Alfred pointed out, halting whatever Batman had to say in its tracks. Seeing his opening, Alfred continued on. “ _I agree that they should have stayed up in the Watchtower, but what’s done is done. They are down here, and if you want them to stay with us then you’ll need them to show that you trust them. Otherwise, all of your efforts will be in vain._ ”  
  
Batman sighed at his butler’s statement, and slowly, his hand went way from the transceiver. Turning around, he walked back towards the Remnantians, his fist still clenched but no longer angrily.  
  
“Alright.”  
  
“What?” Jaune asked in confusion.  
  
“You eight can stay and help.” At his announcement, his protégés looked surprised and the Remnantians overjoyed, only for Batman to silence them with a raised hand. “But, there are limits. None of you are to leave the precinct for any reason, and you will stay with one of them at all times.” He thrust his thumb back at the other vigilantes, who nodded back at them.  
  
“You will also not say _any_ of your names while in there. Your identities are the most important protection you have, and I will not risk it getting out.”  
  
“How are we supposed to refer to ourselves, then?” Ruby asked, only to slightly take a step back when Batman pointed at her.  
  
“Red,” he declared before pointing at Weiss, “Snow, Black, Gold, White, Pink, Scarlet, and Green.” Batman finished giving them their impromptu names in an instant. They couldn’t help but notice how he tried to make it match their color schemes and Aura colors, something they appreciated. “While you are in there, only call each other by those names.”  
  
“Alright, will do.” Weiss nodded. Internally, she thought it was silly that the superheroes were so insistent on secret identities, but she also recognized that they were on thin ice with the Batman as it was. Better to go along with what he says now rather than risk his ire. She knew, however, that Ruby and Jaune were undoubtedly more enthusiastic about it. For the past several nights she had caught the two thinking of superhero names for all of them. Weiss found the exercise childish, but if she had to go along with it just to operate on Earth, then she’d put up with it.  
  
Batman nodded at her, and then the stairway door opened up to reveal the commissioner. James Gordon, if Weiss remembered correctly. He was one of Batman’s biggest allies in the GCPD, and through him a delicate relationship was developed between the two groups.  
  
“Everything all squared away?” he asked, and Batman nodded. “Good. Well then, if you all are ready to go, we’re in the process of interrogating Crane now.”  
  
“We have some ideas on who supplied him with his weapons and equipment,” Blake revealed, drawing Gordon’s attention to her. “We think that the Penguin supplied him with his weapons.”  
  
“Of course he did,” Gordon spat and scowled. “What about the bombs?”  
  
“We aren’t quite sure on that one,” Ren answered reluctantly. “We’re still going over the evidence at the tower.”  
  
“Let me guess, Luthor and Ghul?” Gordon’s question shocked the eight with its accuracy, and they nodded their heads. “I figured as much. I’m more than aware of what he’s pulled, but he is outside of my jurisdiction. Even if he wasn’t, I can’t bring him in without proof.”  
  
“We get that answer a lot when it comes to him,” Pyrrha remarked with a frown. Shaking her head, she turned to look at Batman and the other vigilantes, only to find they were gone, making her jump back. “What the-?”  
  
The others realized what Pyrrha had noticed and they jumped slightly as well. “I didn’t even hear them leave.”  
  
“Yeah, they do that,” Gordon stated, amusement in his voice. “You get used to it after a while.”  
  
“They just leave you?” Ruby asked, and Gordon nodded. A pause ensued between everyone before Nora coughed.  
  
“Well, that’s rude.”

* * *

By the time RWBY and JNPR made their way down to the interrogation room, Batman was already inside of it, interrogating Crane and trying to make him talk. So far, he wasn’t succeeding, and the smug grin on the lunatic’s face sent shivers down their spines.  
  
“Damned psychopath,” Red Hood scowled and glared at the man. The other vigilantes nodded in agreement, keeping a watchful eye on him.  
  
“Anything yet?” Blake asked, and Nightwing shook his head.  
  
“Nothing at all.” His tone was angry, and a quick look told them that the other officers felt the same. “Something about this isn’t right.”  
  
“What do you mean?” Jaune asked while keeping his gaze locked on Scarecrow.  
  
“Just a gut feeling.” Nightwing shrugged. “At least this will be over soon.”  
  
“I hope so,” Ruby nodded then fell silent. After a moment, she began to speak again. “You know, this entire thing reminds me of back home. A man named Roman Torchwick blew a hole into Vale’s walls, letting the Grimm in. We were lucky that we were already there, otherwise things could have gotten really bad.”  
  
“Just as we were lucky that we were in Gotham when Scarecrow made his move.” Nightwing nodded. The group went back into silence then eyed the pistols in Red Hood’s holsters. Noticing this, he huffed and shook his head.  
  
“Yes, I use guns. You got a problem with that?” he accused, only to be surprised when Ruby shook her head.  
  
“No, actually. I use a gun, too. It’s sniper rifle that can turn into a scythe. I’d show you, but we left our weapons up at the Watchtower.” Ruby’s announcement directed the vigilante’s stares at her, each of them looking at her incredulously.  
  
“…I get the sniper part, but why the scythe?” Red Hood asked, making Ruby puff out her chest.  
  
“Because when the Grimm get close, I can shift it to a scythe and kill them with it. Also because scythes are cool.”  
  
“…Fair enough,” Red Hood conceded. “What does it fire?”  
  
“Fifty-BMG,” Ruby revealed, making him and Batwoman whistle.  
  
“Damn, you go all out.” He pulled out a round from his pocket, flicking it around his fingers. “Titanium composite alloy with a C4 kicker. Fastest, most explosive pistol rounds in the world. Made them myself, actually.”  
  
“Oooh,” Ruby cooed as she held out her hand. Red Hood tossed it to her, allowing her to take a closer look. The others also looked at it while she did before a sad expression crossed her face. “We saw what you guys did down there. Wished we could have helped more.”  
  
“Eh, Batman’s always been a little thick headed,” Red Robin stated. “Don’t let it get to you.”  
  
“It’s not just that,” Blake clarified. “It’s just…seeing what that stuff did, and not being able to do anything about it…” She trailed off, but the others understood what she was saying. She felt a hand on her shoulder, and she looked to see Batgirl nodding at her with understanding.  
  
“Tell me,” Spoiler spoke up, directing their attention to her, “the Grimm are attracted to fear, right?” RWBY and JNPR’s expressions turned grim and they nodded.  
  
“Grimm were attracted to negative emotions in general, like fear, anger, and such,” Ren clarified before staring back at the interrogation. Like Nightwing, he too felt something was off, and as the discussion continued around him, he kept his focus on Crane.  
  
“ _You’re trying my patience,_ ” he heard Batman growl through the glass. Crane merely laughed.  
  
“ _What would you have me say? That I feel guilty for my actions? That I wish to repent? There’s nothing to repent for. I feel no guilt over my actions, only satisfaction. Your belief that I can be ‘reformed’ is misguided delusion at best. But that’s not what's most intriguing about you, Batman. You are a very interesting case study. Oh, I know why you do what you do,_ ” Scarecrow laughed. “ _Behind your mask, you are just a scared little boy, aren’t you? Something happened in your youth to make you into what you are. After all, a man doesn’t just decide one day to dress up like a bat and beat up criminals at night._ ” Scarecrow’s words stopped all conversation around Ren as everyone stared at him.  
  
“ _Who supplied you with your equipment?_ ” Batman ignored Crane’s monologue, making the lunatic laugh.  
  
“ _Oh, a classic attempt at deflection! I hit close to the mark, didn’t I?_ ” Batman said nothing at Scarecrow’s question, which only served to make him laugh harder. “ _It doesn’t matter. I don’t really care who you are under that mask. After all, I wouldn’t be surprised if that mask_ is _who you truly believe yourself to be. How I wish I could have the chance to analyze you in closer detail._ ”  
  
“Gods, he pisses me off…” Yang clenched her fist at the psychopath, as did the others. From the corner of her eye, she saw the vigilantes tensing at his words. What he was saying was infuriating them on a personal level.  
  
“ _Is that not what you’re doing right now?_ ” Batman suddenly asked, halting Crane’s laughter in its tracks. “ _Deflection, delusions of grandeur, hiding behind a mask. Behind your mask, you’re just a lonely man who was never loved, a man who was scared at everything and tried to project that fear onto the world._ ”  
  
“ _I_ am _fear incarnate. Nothing scares me._ ”  
  
“ _Oh, I doubt that very much._ ” Batman glared at the psychologist, who glared right back. Just then, he began to smile darkly and chuckled, making Batman suspicious.  
  
“ _I must admit, I always enjoy our little chats, Batman,_ ” he admitted. “ _But, I’m afraid that this is where we must say goodbye._ ”  
  
Everyone tensed at his words, and Ren’s eyes widened as his Aura-enhanced senses detected something at the other side of the wall.  
  
“Get down!” he yelled and tackled Nora to the floor, just as Batman hurled himself through the one-way mirror. At that moment, a small explosion rang out from the other side of the concrete wall, creating a large hole to the street on the other side. Masked men wielding rifles emerged from the hole, firing their weapons at the superheroes and forcing them into cover.  
  
“Let’s go, boss!” one of the men announced as he cut Crane’s binds with a large knife. At the same time, he handed him another burlap mask, along with a large leather bag.  
  
“Thank you.” Crane smiled wickedly as he placed the mask over his head. Calmly, he walked through the hole towards freedom, pausing only to turn and look at where the heroes were hiding. “As I said, you can’t stop fear Batman.”  
  
“Grrgh!” Red Hood growled as he finished loading his pistols then combined them into a rifle. He then shifted his optics to a camera on the front end of his rifle, allowing him to see what his gun was pointed at, then popped it over the wall he was taking cover behind. The vigilante started to fire just as the criminals began to go back through the hole they made. “Dammit!”  
  
“Come on! We have to get them!” Ruby announced as she broke cover in a burst of petals.  
  
“Wait!” Batman yelled after her, but she already disappeared through the hole. He turned to look at the rest of the Remnantians, only to find that they too were already breaking cover and running after her. With a grunt, Batman leaped over the wall and ran after them, the others following shortly after. Following the trail of rose petals, they saw it drifted upwards to a nearby roof, telling them where Crane had gone. Batman immediately grabbed hold of Yang and grappled the two of them over, followed by everyone else.  
  
“Oracle, Scarecrow’s escaped!” Batman yelled into his microphone.  
  
“ _We know! Choppers are already en route!_ ” Oracle frantically replied. Gunshots could now be heard, making the rest of RWBY and JNPR anxious. Those could only mean that Scarecrow’s goons were shooting at Ruby. As they jumped across an alley, they finally spotted the group, and as they expected, Scarecrow’s goons were firing haphazardly at a red blur.  
  
“Get away from her!” Yang yelled out in worry and leaped towards her sister. As she landed, Ruby rematerialized to reveal she was wielding one of the criminals' rifles and fired a single bullet. The round struck another’s rifle, blowing it out of his hands and making the man clutch his wrist in pain.  
  
“Nice shot,” Red Hood admitted as he joined the fray, firing his rifle. The spray of bullets forced the criminals into cover, allowing the rest of the group to make it to her.  
  
“I told you to stay in the precinct!” Batman chastised the huntress while he leaped towards one of the thugs. The man tried to strike him with his rifle, only for Batman to rip the gun from his hands and crack it across his face.  
  
“And I wasn’t just going to let him get away! Not when I can do something about it!” Ruby countered while firing her rifle at a group of men, forcing them into cover. It may not have been her baby, but it would have to do. One man tried to shoot her, only for Yang to jump in its path, the bullet bouncing harmlessly off her Aura.  
  
“That tickled,” she growled and charged the man. The thug fired his rifle at her, each bullet flattening against the brawler’s Aura and doing nothing, only to stop when Yang finally got to him. Grabbing his neck, she delivered a powerful punch to his gut, knocking the air out of his lungs and making him crumple. She then ripped the mask off his head, just as a stream of bile erupted out of the man’s mouth, making her wince before kicking him across the head and knocking him out. “Ew gross, he got some on my shoe!”  
  
“Focus, Gold!” Red Robin shouted as he deployed his staff into a shield. Bullets pinged off of it as he ran towards a gunman before firing his grapple gun at the man. Rather than pull the man towards him, Red Robin pulled himself towards the man to deliver a kick to his chest, knocking him to the ground. Before he could seize the opening, Blake was already on him, pinning him to the ground and punching him in the face, knocking him unconscious. She nodded at Red Robin, only to disappear as another man fired his rifle at her and dissipated her Shadow. Nora then announced herself by ripping a lead pipe off of a nearby wall, creating a small gout of steam and swinging it into the gunman’s arm, breaking it.  
  
“Gaagh!” he screamed and dropped his rifle, allowing Jaune to tackle him to the ground and wallop him in the head. After a few blows, his eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fell unconscious. Another man tried to shoot Jaune, only for Pyrrha to leap in and direct his gunfire into the air. He tried to punch her, only for the champion to catch his fist and headbutt him, knocking him out instantly.  
  
“Thanks.” Jaune smiled at her, and Pyrrha smiled back. They all turned to look at Scarecrow, who was flanked by his last two men. While the supervillain himself simply looked annoyed, the two thugs looked scared and were backing away.  
  
“Hmmph,” Scarecrow grunted as he reached into his leather bag, pulling out a spherical grenade. He hadn’t wanted to use this, as it was still under development, but now it didn’t look like he had much of a choice.  
  
“Give it up, Crane!” Batman announced while he and the other heroes closed in on the criminals. The two thugs then looked at each other for a moment then threw down their rifles.  
  
“We give up!” they announced, raising their arms above their head.  
  
“Cowards!” Scarecrow snarled and pushed them towards the heroes, pulling the pin on his grenade and throwing it after them. Everyone looked at it for a moment before it exploded, releasing a cloud of yellow gas that briefly ignited. The two thugs fell to the ground as fire scorched them, rolling around to put it out, while the heroes merely patted out the flames.  
  
“What was that supposed to do?” Weiss asked, unimpressed. “In case you haven’t noticed, we’re—”  
  
“Oh, I noticed what you’re wearing,” Scarecrow darkly admitted, confusing everyone.  
  
That was when the first cracks began to appear on their rebreathers, and Scarecrow began to chuckle.  
  
“It’s a new formula I’ve been developing. It wasn’t quite ready yet. The fire burns away most of the gas, leaving its effects something to be desired. But, it does have one noticeable improvement.” The rebreathers continued to break as Scarecrow explained, and Batman rushed towards him. Then, the rebreathers broke apart completely, exposing the heroes to the toxic gas. “Welcome to my nightmare.”  
  
“No!” Weiss covered her mouth in a vain attempt to shield herself, as did the others. She began coughing, and then her vision started to blur and distort. Falling to the ground, a stark white blur formed into the image of her father standing over her, as tall and imposing as when she was a child, bearing his gaze down on her and making her feel small and powerless before him. Blake scrambled away on the ground as she saw Adam Taurus slowly march towards her, a hateful snarl on below his mask as his glowing red sword extended outwards and raised above his head.  
  
“Fight…it…” Ruby grunted as she fell to her knees. Images of Brainiac swarmed around in her vision, the shrunken remains of Vale crushed in his heartless grip while the prongs of his metal tentacle slowly reached for her eye, forcing her to close her eyes and clutch her head even as tears started streaming down her face. “It’s not real…it’s not real…”  
  
“Oh, but it is,” Scarecrow countered as the heroes became immobilized by the gas, experiencing their worst fears come to life. “I wonder what you are seeing? For such a young girl, perhaps it is a monster? A concept, maybe? Perhaps my suspicions are correct and you eight are the ones who appeared in Metropolis not too long ago. Are you seeing those creatures, the Grimm as you called them? Such marvelous things, I must admit. They almost seem to be perfect embodiments of fear itself.”  
  
“Go..to…hell…” Yang grunted as she rose to her feet, staggering as she did. She slowly made her way towards him, forcing herself to ignore the sights of the people she loved turning their backs on her and leaving her alone, only to fall onto her knees and pant. Sweat trickled down her head, and her pupils were the size of pinpricks.  
  
“I must admit, your resistance to my formula is intriguing. I can’t help but wonder if it is a result of your alien biology?” Scarecrow mused as he crouched over her, pulling a syringe from his bag. Inside was an orange liquid, and Yang could tell that whatever it was, it was not good. Turning her head slightly, she saw Nora hugging her knees while shaking like a leaf, Jaune was frantically looking around at unseen horrors he was unable to stop, and Crane took hold of her arm. “Hold still. This will only take a moment.”  
  
Yang ripped her arm from his grasp and backed away, the toxin making it hard to concentrate. She could feel her Aura working to counteract the toxin’s effects, but until it did, she wasn't sure if she’d be able to stop him from injecting that stuff into her. She tried to throw a punch, only for Scarecrow to easily dodge it and retaliate with a swipe of his hook, striking her across the face. The blow stung and staggered her, but otherwise did nothing.  
  
“Hmm, interesting.” Scarecrow hummed to himself as he kicked Yang in the knee, forcing her down. He looked around, seeing that his window of opportunity was depleting, and with a sigh he reluctantly turned to move away. “Shame, I would have liked to have—”  
  
He didn’t get the chance to finish his sentence as Ren suddenly tackled him off the building. They tumbled through the air and crashed through a nearby window, only to land and shatter a wooden table. Rising to his feet, Scarecrow backed away from Ren and tensed himself, while the Mistralian boy slowly picked himself off the shattered remains of the table.  
  
“How are you…?” Scarecrow asked before noticing a distinct lack of color on Ren’s body. His entire body looked to be a dull grey, while his expression was the picture of calm focus, devoid of any confusion or distress, and at once the doctor understood what was happening. “You’re able to counteract my toxin’s effects? How are you-?”  
  
Ren suddenly ran and pushed him, knocking him into a wall. A painting fell down to the ground as the two struggled, and Crane headbutted the boy to release his hold. As Ren clutched his face, Scarecrow took note of the boy’s body, and the distortion flickering over his skin. It appeared that the toxin was indeed affecting him, but the boy was somehow able to counteract most of its effects, at least enough to remain coherent. Narrowing his eyes, Scarecrow pulled out his hooked chain and twirled it in a wide circle, striking Ren repeatedly across the face. On the third swing, Ren grabbed the chain and hoisted it towards him, dragging Scarecrow with it in order to deliver a roundhouse kick.  
  
Scarecrow was knocked back but was able to stay on his feet. Ren however, exploited his state by rushing towards him, delivering blow after blow to the man’s sides. Grabbing his collar, Ren headbutted the psychologist then kneed him in the stomach, making him crumple to the ground. Breathing deeply, Ren turned to look at the building they had jumped from, wondering how he was going to get them both back up there, only for Scarecrow to tackle him out the window. They tumbled through the air, each punching the other, only for Ren to take the blow as they landed on the roof of a parked car. Shattered glass sprayed everywhere, and as Ren caught his breath, Scarecrow took the time to hobble away. His leg was sprained by the fall, and a quick glance back showed that Ren was still unharmed, prying himself out of the wreckage.  
  
“Grrgh,” he growled and turned to face the boy, taking his hook in hand.  
  
“Stop, Crane.” Ren commanded across the empty street, putting himself in a combat ready stance. “You can’t win.”  
  
“The fact that you believe that shows how misguided you are!” Scarecrow angrily insisted as he threw the chain at the boy. Ren nimbly ducked under it and ran towards the criminal, jumping over the chain as Scarecrow pulled it back. While flipping in the air, Ren directed his feet downward and kicked him across the head, sending him to the ground. Ren then picked him up and slammed him against a nearby car, shattering the glass window and preparing to throw a punch, only for Crane to spray more gas out of his glove. No longer having the rebreather’s protection, Ren stumbled back as the gas took hold. His vision became distorted, and he saw Scarecrow’s body shift and twist. Bugs covered the man’s body, and his arms became long and stretched, weapons poking out of his back that didn’t seem to harm anything. It reminded him of the Grimm that destroyed his home when he was young, and a trickle of fear started leaking through the walls of enforced calm erected by his Semblance.  
  
“So, you do experience fear,” Scarecrow declared as he walked over to the boy, his hook raised high. He swung downward, only for a thrown batarang to knock it out of his hand. “Aagh!”  
  
As Scarecrow grasped his wrist, Ren took the chance to tackle the crazed man to the ground. Pinning him, he punched him across the face repeatedly, his Semblance making way for a deep rooted fury to overwhelm the fear he was experiencing. Ripping off Scarecrow’s mask, Ren snarled and continued to beat the man silly, breaking his nose and bloodying his lip. Finally, he stopped as Crane’s head swiveled, straining to look at the boy in astonishment. Grabbing the bastard by his collar, Ren flipped him up over his shoulder and down into another parked car’s hood, denting it and knocking the man unconscious.  
  
Ren breathed deeply, silently daring the Scarecrow to rise to his feet, but he never did. He let out a sigh of relief, only to feel a hand gently clasp his shoulder. Ren turned away sharply and backed up, seeing a monstrous humanoid bat staring at him, whose eyes shone brightly. Rather than attack, it held up its hands and began to speak, its speech garbled but still understandable.  
  
“Relax, everything’s fine,” the creature insisted while pulling out a strange needle. Ren’s vision was warped, but he had enough of his senses to know what the creature truly was, and with a nod he allowed it to inject him. He felt a slight prick that soon subsided, and a cool sensation passed through his arm. It spread across his body, and he felt his senses slowly return to him. Ren’s vision became less distorted, and he soon saw that it was indeed the Batman who was staring at him, his eyes filled with a mixture of pride and concern.  
  
“Are you alright?” he asked, and Ren slowly nodded his head.  
  
“I’ll be fine,” Ren answered and turned to face Crane. With a scowl, he turned back to Batman. “How are the others?”  
  
“They’re fine, if a little jumpy,” Batman replied. “I’ve already administered the antidote to them. We’re lucky that the dosage wasn’t concentrated.”  
  
“Yeah, I noticed,” Ren winced as his injuries suddenly made themselves heard, his Aura playing over them. Batman moved to help him, only for Ren to hold up his hand. “Can we just…get out of here?”  
  
Batman stayed silent before nodding. Together, they moved towards the unconscious Scarecrow and stripped him of his suit, then bound his hands and feet together. A moment later, a large plane appeared overhead and landed on the street, the bottom opening up to reveal a troop compartment. Ruby and the others were already inside, watching as the two men walked inside. As they did, the doors closed behind them, and the Batplane flew off into the night.

* * *

 _Watchtower, One Hour Later_  
  
“Ren was able to use his Semblance to suppress the fear toxin and apprehended Crane while Ruby managed to administer the antidote I had on my person at all times,” Batman stated to the other League founders as video of the incident in question played out. Superman silently watched and sighed regretfully.  
  
“I should have kept a closer eye on them,” he admitted. The possibility of them going against their orders was considered, but not them grabbing HAZMAT suits and sneaking right by them.  
  
“Yes, you should have.” Batman glared at them angrily before sighing. “But, what’s done is done. J’onn, how are they?”  
  
“They are doing well, all things considered,” J’onn admitted, shame and regret showing across his face and tone. “I can detect no long term psychological or physical ailments from the experience. We are lucky the dosage was so low.”  
  
“And that their minds were strong enough to handle it on their own,” Green Lantern stated. “I’ll keep a close eye on them regardless, give them a person to talk to.”  
  
“Same here,” Flash agreed, leaning forward in his chair. Tapping his fingers against the desk, he turned to face the others. “So, what happens now?”  
  
They turned to face Batman who calmly looked at them. “At the very least, they’ve proven they have the capability to handle assignments, as well as the determination to see them through. Regardless of whether or not we want them to. At this point, it will be best to take them under our wings more directly, send them on missions with other League members. _After_ they’ve fully recovered from their ordeal.”  
  
“You think that is best?” Hawkgirl asked and Batman nodded. Nodding back, Hawkgirl turned to look at John, learning forward across the table. “John, were you…?”  
  
“No, the Corps haven’t found Remnant yet,” Green Lantern admitted. “They’re looking though, and we’ll be the first to know once they do.”  
  
“Notify us once you have word. Finding it may bring them closure,” Superman stated, knowing from experience from when he himself flew out to the ruins of his destroyed home. J’onn himself had visited Mars a few times since he awoke on Earth, if just to remind him of what he had to ensure never happened again. Everyone then turned their attention towards Diana, who was staring silently at the diagram of the mask-shattering gas Scarecrow had used against them.  
  
“Diana, you’ve been awfully quiet,” Flash noted. “What’s up?”  
  
“That gas…” Diana began to say, alarm in her voice. “I’ve seen it before, or rather something like it.” Her statement caught everyone’s attention, each demanding to know what she was referring to.  
  
“Where?” Batman asked, and Diana looked straight at him.  
  
“France, in 1918.”  
  
[~][~]


	6. Paradise Island

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chasing after a lead following the incident in Gotham, Diana takes RWBY and JNPR to Themyscira, home to the ancient Amazons. She intends to provide them a sense of relief and relaxation, but life rarely works exactly as desired.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 6: Paradise Island **

* * *

Diana awoke with a start. Groaning to herself, she sat upright and let the bed covers fall off of her, while she herself closed her eyes and breathed deeply. She knew why she had woken up the way she did, as it had not been the first time it happened. Even after a century, it still hurt just as much now as it did then. Admittedly, she had thought she had finally gotten over it, finally moved on, but seeing Scarecrow’s horrid gas brought his memory back to the forefront of her mind.

“Steve…” she muttered as she got out of bed and threw open the blinds, revealing the still slumbering Parisian landscape, the Eiffel Tower standing tall. Opening the window, she sighed as she took in the sights and sounds of the city, the smell of freshly baked bread wafting in from the bakeries below. As the aroma reached her window, Diana allowed herself to relax. Something about Paris always seemed to soothe her. With the window still opened, she walked back to her bed and turned on the TV, only to frown as the news station displayed a still recovering Gotham City.

“ _Due to the quick actions of Batman and the Gotham City Police Department, Jonathan Crane, the Scarecrow, was able to be apprehended and reinstated into Arkham Asylum,_ ” Vicki Vale, a reporter for Gotham City News, said into the microphone. Behind her, police cars and men wearing HAZMAT suits walked around, checking buildings for any remaining pockets of gas and preventing people from coming close. “ _It is currently unknown how long before the affected areas of Gotham will be—”_

Diana shut the TV off and threw the remote on her bed. Sighing once again, Diana sat down on a wooden chair and began to think. It had been two days since the attack on Gotham City, and it was still the hottest story around the world. Attacks by supervillains often were, especially on a scale large enough to shut down a major city. Current estimates say it will take weeks to get the city back to normal, prompting Batman to take a temporary leave of absence to keep his full attention there. The FBI, CIA, and other organizations were currently working on trying to figure out just how Crane managed to pull off an attack of this magnitude, but the insane man wasn’t talking. Every attempt to interrogate him ended in utter failure, and they were no closer now than they were when they first apprehended him.

That didn’t mean they didn’t have a lead. It wasn’t from anything Crane had said but what he had used. After Ren managed to catch him, beating him into unconsciousness as he did, Batman was able to acquire a few of his grenades for analysis. The results confirmed what she had already suspected, especially after Commissioner Gordon managed to find Crane’s base of operations. As it turned out, the gas grenades Crane had used were based off of mustard gas, only modified to deliver a dose of fear toxin. What was most horrifying, however, was the particular type of mustard gas the grenades were based off of. Somehow, for reasons Diana did not have an answer to, Crane had managed to get his hands on the same modified mustard gas created by Dr. Isabel Maru in the closing months of the first World War, one that was built on hydrogen instead of sulfur.

That should have been impossible, but before she could ruminate further she heard the sound of creaking wood. Diana sharply turned around, pulling out her sword from underneath her desk, only to stop once she saw exactly who was in her room.

“Donna,” Diana greeted her sister with a smile, sheathing her sword and relaxing herself.

“Diana, have your senses been dulled after spending so much time in Man’s World?” Donna asked as she placed her hand on her hip. Diana didn’t deign to answer and merely laughed, prompting her fellow Amazon to laugh with her before the two embraced. “It’s good to see you again, sister.”

“It’s good to see you, too, Donna.” Diana let go of her sibling and stepped away, her expression turning more serious. “Something tells me that you aren’t here on a social visit.”

“No, unfortunately.” Donna shook her head. “I bring a message from Queen Hippolyta.”

“And?” Donna smiled faintly at Diana’s question.

“Your request has been approved.”

* * *

_Watchtower, Earth Geosynchronous Orbit_

“RAAGH!” Yang shouted as she pummeled the last hologram into submission, the man disappearing in a red flash. At once, a loud klaxon blared through the training arena, marking the session as complete and causing the cityscape around her to disappear. Yang panted and felt beads of sweat drip off of her before standing upright. “Again.”

“ _Yang, I must advise against this course of action,_ ” J’onn responded to her request over the intercom.

“Noted. Again.”

“ _Yang, listen to him,_ ” Ruby pleaded. “ _You’ve been in there for almost two hours straight. It’s time for rest._ ”

“And I told you—”

“ _No, Yang. Before I was asking nicely. Now, I am ordering you to come out of there and rest._ ” Ruby’s voice was much sterner than before, sending Yang slightly aback before she relented.

“Fine.” The brawler sighed and moved towards the now opening door. Ruby was on the other side, a concerned look on her face and a bottle of water and towel in her hands, a couple of their friends lounging with some off-duty heroes in the common room behind her. Yang  met her sister in the other room and took them graciously, gulping the water down and wiping off the accumulated sweat on her body,

“Gods, Yang!” Jaune turned in their direction and scrunched his nose before waving his hand in front of his face. Yang looked at him for a moment before lifting up her arm and sniffing, only to recoil at what she smelled.

“Uggh, that is nasty,” Yang called out. “Gonna hit the showers real quick.”

“Smell you later!” Flash joked while waving at a nearby door. Yang flashed a grin at the man and walked over at a brisk pace before disappearing behind the steel doors. As she disappeared, Ruby turned to look at the others and saw that Pyrrha was already heading inside, Jaune remaining content to stay in the lobby this time. The doors closed behind her and Ruby released a sigh.

“You okay?” Flash asked as he noticed the girl’s forlorn expression.

“I’m fine.” Ruby waved him off, but Flash remained unconvinced. He sat down on the large sofa, patting the seat down next to him and beckoning her to join him. Seeing how he wasn’t going to take no for an answer, Ruby sighed and sat down next to him.

“Now, tell your Uncle Flash everything,” Flash lightly commanded, concern evident in his voice. Ruby sighed and looked down at her feet before beginning to speak.

“Well… Flash, I messed up,” she revealed.

“I wouldn’t say that…” Flash began, only for Ruby to cut him off.

“Really, then what do you call dragging your team down to Gotham City and getting them gassed?”

“An unforeseen development,” Flash suggested without hesitation. Before Ruby could object, Flash held up a hand. “Look, Ruby. Yes, you guys shouldn’t have gone down there. Not yet, at least. But, you guys went down there with the best of intentions and were as prepared as you possibly could be. Had things gone as expected, nothing bad would have happened. None of us expected Scarecrow to have a gas like that, so you can’t blame yourself for it catching you and the others off guard.”

“But…” Ruby stopped as Flash put a hand on her shoulder, and she sighed once again. “Look, I know that it wasn’t my fault, and I’m happy that we were able to help bring Scarecrow down. If I’m being honest with myself, I’d probably go down there again. But…when I remember the faces everyone was making, how…afraid they all were, I can’t help but feel that had I not dragged them down there, they wouldn’t have gotten hurt.”

“You didn’t drag us down there, Ruby. And if we hadn’t gone down there, then Scarecrow probably would have gotten away to hurt more innocent people,” Jaune called out from his seat, directing the speedsters’ attention towards him. Getting up, he walked over to them and sat down across from Ruby, a comforting expression on his face.

“I won’t lie, Ruby. What happened down there was, frankly, terrifying. I… He made me see you and everyone else die because of my incompetence.” Jaune’s expression was grim but he continued. “But never think that you dragged us down there. We could have stayed up here and no one would have blamed us, especially after what happened. But you didn’t. You chose to go down there because it was the right thing to do, Ruby.”

Jaune smiled and put his hand on Ruby’s shoulder. “You didn’t make us do anything. What you did do is let us follow you. And I promise you, that will never change.” Ruby smiled at Jaune’s encouragement, as did Flash and a freshly showered Yang, currently leaning on the entryway door.

‘ _He’s a good friend,_ ’ she mused to herself just as the intercom blared to life.

“ _Teams RWBY and JNPR, please report to the hangar bay immediately,_ ” Mr. Terrific’s voice rang out over the intercom. Looking at each other, the Remnantians shrugged, gathered their equipment, and made their way towards the hangar. The doors to the training room opened just before they left the lobby and Pyrrha joined up with them. By the time the quartet arrived at the hangar bay doors, Ren, Nora, Blake, and Weiss were already waiting for them, along with Diana and a younger woman they did not recognize. The woman looked similar to Diana in many ways. The long, raven black hair, similar facial structure, and a pair of silver bracers on her wrists. She was wearing a set of red armor with gold trim, a white star emblazoned on the chest and lining the sides. A single short sword was holstered at her hip, attached to a golden belt with a W on its center, and she had a curious expression on her face as she looked at them. For a moment, everyone stared silently at each other before Diana moved to speak.

“Everyone, I want you to meet my sister, Donna Troy,” Diana revealed, directing everyone’s attention to the Amazon. She waved at them with a reserved smile, her posture slightly stiff and formal under everyone’s attention, only to step back slightly as Nora enthusiastically thrust her hand out towards her.

“Hi, I’m Nora! Pleased to meet you!” Nora smiled brightly, and after a moment Donna relaxed. Her smile grew into something more genuine as she took her hand.

“Hello, Nora. I’m happy to meet all of you as well!” Nora smiled at that, and as the others introduced themselves to the Amazon, they turned to face Diana, curiosity on their faces.

“So, what is it that you called us all out here for?” Weiss asked, putting her hand on her hip. “I don’t think it was just for introductions. No offense, Donna.”

“None taken, Weiss.” Donna shook her head before straightening her shoulders and puffing out her chest in an apparent attempt to regain the official atmosphere that Nora had thrown off so easily. “Actually, I’m here to extend to you all an invitation!”

“An invitation?” Pyrrha raised her eyebrow. “To where, exactly?”

“To my home,” Diana revealed, sending Weiss aback.

“Wait, you’re inviting us to Themyscira?” Weiss asked Donna, who nodded in affirmation.

“Uh, us? As in all of us?” Jaune piped up as he awkwardly pointed between himself and Ren. “I didn’t think we were allowed to uh, y’know…”

“I’m guessing Flash has been having some fun at your expense.” Diana rolled her eyes with a smile. “Don’t worry about those tall tales. Men are not forbidden from stepping foot on our land, not anymore at least. As long as you’ve received proper permission to enter, which you just have, you’re as welcome as your friends.” Diana smiled warmly as fond memories of her youth entered her mind. “It’s been several years since I’ve been to my home, and I figured you all would enjoy seeing it as well.”

“Well that sounds grand!” Pyrrha spoke up with her usual warm smile. “After everything you’ve told us about your homeland, it would be an honor to see it with our own eyes. When will we be leaving?”

“We can depart whenever you’re ready. Our transport is prepped and can leave at any time,” Wonder Woman responded, causing the group of teenagers to scan the empty space around them in bafflement.

“Um… What transport?” Blake flatly asked what they were all wondering.

“Why, this transport of course!” Donna indicated the thin air around her with a theatrical sweep of her arm while sharing a conspiratorial grin with her sister.

“You mean it’s on the other side of the hangar?” Jaune asked as he shrugged and started walking past them. “Well, it’s not like we have any real luggage right now, so there’s no reason to—” Before Donna could reach out and stop him, there was a dull clunk as his blond head suddenly rebounded off the air, sending him sprawling to the ground and clutching his head. “Owww….”

“Jaune!” Pyrrha rushed to her partner’s sprawled and groaning form before catching herself from repeating his misfortune. Emerald eyes narrowed at a faint distortion in the air, and the red head cautiously reached out before pushing against a large, solid obstacle that felt faintly metallic. “What is this?”

“I’m so sorry!” Donna fretted as she offered the grumbling boy a hand up. “Surprising people with the Invisible Jet is usually pretty funny, but I didn’t mean for you to get introduced to it quite so…directly.”

“Did you say, ‘Invisible Jet’?” Jaune paused in rubbing his aching forehead to gaze up behind the apologetic Amazon. Now that he knew what to look for, he could see the faint outline of a large aircraft, one that was sleek and elegant looking. The more he looked, the bump on his head and honestly more wounded pride became completely forgotten as his eyes sparkled.

“That’s so cool!”

* * *

It took another ten minutes before any one of them could stop poking and prodding the Invisible Jet and allow the Amazons to open the hatch. Any hope that the action would calm them down was dashed once it was revealed that although the exterior was invisible, the interior was not.

“This is so awesome!” Jaune exclaimed as he poked his head in and out of the hatch.

“I know!” Ruby agreed as she did the exact same thing Jaune was doing. The two were geeking out the most over the aircraft, and while the others all agreed that it was cool, they were all itching to move out.

“Will you two sit down already?” Weiss demanded, any trace of patience gone and replaced with irritation. “You two can marvel at this thing once we get in the air.”

Ruby and Jaune looked at Weiss before sighing. “Fine…” they both droned and reluctantly stepped away from the hatch and towards their seats, the hatch closing behind them with a hiss.

“Pressure is sealed. We are ready for takeoff,” Diana revealed as she finished her preflight checklist. “Everyone strapped in? We’re going to descend through the atmosphere, so things will get a little bumpy.”

A series of clicks answered Diana’s question, and with a smile she turned her attention fully to their craft. The jet began to rumble and shake as it rolled forward towards the hangar bay doors, the sound of a turbine jet engine starting behind them. Then, at a moment’s notice, the plane rocketed forward, throwing the teenagers back against their seats. The roar of the engine was deafened by the plane’s hull, but that didn’t mean that they missed the sound disappearing once they broke though the force field separating the hangar from the cold vacuum of space. As they moved further out, the effects of the station’s artificial gravity generators lessened, allowing everyone’s hair to steadily float upwards.

“Heh, your hair looks funny,” Ruby chuckled at the sight of Weiss’ ponytail sticking straight up. Weiss merely rolled her eyes and huffed while the others laughed faintly at her expense.

“Laugh it up, Xiao Long. Your hair’s doing the exact same thing,” Weiss pointed out, a ghost of a smile on her lips. Indeed, Yang’s hair was acting as though it was in water, flowing upwards in a multitude of directions. Yang looked up to see that Weiss was correct and then laughed.

“Uggh,” Jaune gulped as his face turned slightly green and his breathing became ragged. Pyrrha looked at him in concern, only for him to wave her off. As he did, his face and breathing went back to normal. “I’m fine, don’t worry. I can handle it.” Pyrrha nodded at her partner’s reassurance then faced forward.

“Brace yourselves,” Donna announced. “We’re about to hit the atmosphere. This part’s the worst of it.”

Everyone braced themselves as tightly as they could, feelings of apprehension in all of them. This would be the first time they would actually have to descend through Earth’s atmosphere. Before, they always went down via teleporter, and they had seen enough Earth media to know just how rough and dangerous reentry could be.

Once they entered Earth’s atmosphere, the friction became obvious immediately. The aircraft began to shake violently, the intense friction causing fire to erupt across the hull. Although the aircraft itself remained stable on the inside, Jaune couldn’t help but close his eyes and clench his straps tightly, forcing himself to keep the contents of his stomach down as hard as he could. The others were doing the same to varying degrees for the entire experience, except for Nora who was excitedly looking at everything as if she was on a roller coaster.

“This is awesome! You guys should check this out!” she exclaimed as she looked through the window. The others didn’t deign her with a response while they kept themselves steady, until finally the rumbling stopped and the flight became smooth once more. Opening their eyes, they saw white, billowy clouds passing by them at great speed, and a nod from Donna gave them permission to unlock their seats and stretch their legs.

“Man, what a rush!” Yang exclaimed as she fixed her messy hair. A quick glance told her Weiss and Blake were doing the same thing, although Weiss was the more focused of the two. Occasionally, Blake’s fingers would brush against her exposed cat-ears only to continue on with her brushing. Had Yang not been paying attention, she might have not even noticed it, but she did. It was then that Yang was reminded of a sobering thought. For all Blake and them knew, she was potentially the last Faunus in existence. Sure, there were still the ones trapped inside Brainiac’s bottles, but that was of little comfort if they couldn’t get them free.

Yang put those dismal thoughts aside for the moment, content to merely put her hand on her partner’s shoulder in silent comfort. Blake looked at her friend in brief surprise then smiled, appreciative of the gesture and said nothing.

“So,” Donna began as she got out of the co-pilot’s seat and walked towards them, “we should be arriving in Themyscira shortly. If you want, I can answer any questions any of you may have about my home and my people.”

Donna’s offer was met with murmurs among the huntsmen and huntresses, something that the Wonder Girl had come to expect. Many of the people she met often had questions regarding the Amazons and how they lived, and it came as no surprise that people from another world would be in the same boat. As they discussed among themselves, Donna stood upright, puffing herself up to look as regal and strong as possible, something her sister did effortlessly.

“Um, I have one,” Ruby asked with a hand raised. “How did the Amazons,” she paused, looking for the right word, “…come about?”

“You mean to say, how did a race of immortal women come to be and live on Themyscira?” Donna asked, to which Ruby nodded. Donna nodded her head and sat down on a nearby chair, a warm smile on her face. “My mother told me this story once when I was young. In the beginning, the gods of Olympus ruled over the world. Zeus, God of the Sky, was king among them. He made beings in his own image, beings for the rest of the Olympians to rule over. This race became known as man. At first, man was good, peaceful and just. They were in harmony with one another.

“But, one Olympian, Ares, the God of War, grew jealous of his brother’s affections towards his creations and sought to destroy them. To do so, he poisoned the hearts of men, made them fight amongst each other, made them wage war.” Diana frowned slightly at this statement, something that Blake, Pyrrha and Ren noticed out of the corner of their eyes, but said nothing. “In an attempt to stop this, to teach man the value of love and peace, the goddesses Athena, Artemis, Aphrodite, Hera, and Hestia created the Amazons to guide them. For a time, the world became peaceful once more, but it was not to be.”

“What happened?” Yang asked, enraptured by the tale albeit with a healthy dose of skepticism. It sounded a bit too picture perfect for her, but she wasn’t going to voice that.

“We were deceived,” Donna revealed with a frown on her face. “Under the leadership of my mother, Queen Hippolyta, and her sister Antiope, Themyscira prospered in what is now known as Greece, keeping us safe from the threat of Ares. He hated us, viewed our efforts to calm man as a threat to his ambitions, and sought to destroy us. To that end, he ordered the strongest hero of Man’s World, Heracles, to obtain Hippolyta’s girdle as one of his Twelve Labors. At first, he attempted to do so by force, only for him to be defeated in combat. Still determined to obtain her girdle, he feigned acceptance and seduced my mother, making her lower her guard long enough to obtain her girdle. When he finally accomplished his goal, the rest of his army stormed Themyscira and…enslaved us.” Donna clenched her fist tightly, a scowl forming on her face, but quickly calmed herself and carried on. It wasn’t hard for the others to figure out exactly what had happened, and anger at the injustice inflicted on the Amazons washed over them.

“After a fierce struggle,” Donna eventually continued, “my mother and Antiope were able to free our people when the Gods of Olympus came to our aid. They were beset by Ares, determined to finish us off once and for all, and one by one the Gods fell to his blades until only Zeus was left. With the last of his strength, Zeus struck Ares down and created Themyscira to protect the Amazons as well as what the island stored: a weapon capable of killing a god. After that, the Amazons retreated from the world for centuries, never venturing outside of the protective magics that surrounded our island home. We stayed that way for thousands of years.”

“What changed?” Jaune asked, curiosity in his voice. Donna looked at Diana for guidance, to which the Wonder Woman sighed, activated the autopilot, and stepped towards the Remnantians.

“A century ago, a man crashed onto Themyscira’s shores. His name was Steve Trevor,” Diana spoke, captivating her audience. “He was a spy for the United States, and his arrival marked the end of Themyscira’s isolation from the world. Steve revealed that the world was embroiled in a Great War,” RWBY and JNPR perked up at this, something the Amazons noticed. Diana then remembered the history of Remnant, and a sorrowful look crossed her face. “It was indeed much like the Great War of Remnant. It spanned the entire globe, consuming entire countries and generations in needless violence. By the time Steve crashed onto Themyscira, the war had already consumed millions of people, and no end was in sight.”

Diana paused to collect herself then continued, a sorrowful look on her face. “But what was worst was that a peace treaty was being negotiated. This treaty would end the war, but a German general had created a weapon that, in his eyes, could bring his nation to victory. Steve stole the plans for it, and had it been deployed, the war could have carried on into perpetuity.”

“And you wouldn’t let that stand,” Donna declared with awed pride in her voice as she looked up at her sister. Excitedly Donna turned towards the others, only to quickly recompose herself as she saw the mirthful look of recognition on Yang’s face. Diana merely chuckled before continuing. She moved to speak, only for a red light to begin flashing on the jet’s controls. Diana calmly turned and walked to her seat, a warm smile appearing on her face. Curious, the two teams moved to peek out the windows, only for Diana to press a button and make the jet’s interior translucent. They gasped as they saw the clouds wisp by, accumulating in a large mass in front of them.

“We’re here,” Diana declared just as they entered the cloudbank. The world became white as clouds covered them, only to suddenly break as they left them behind. The two teams gasped as the island of Themyscira came into view. Diana had previously described her island home as a paradise, but that seemed to be an understatement. The island itself was covered in lush, green forests, with tall mountain peaks elevating the landscape. As they passed the mountains, the travelers could see stone buildings blend into the land around them harmoniously, mostly in isolation. As they grew closer and closer to a large circular bay at the far end of the island, the buildings grew closer and closer together before finally revealing a bustling city of white marble. Columned square buildings rose along the hills the city was built upon, white spires reaching into the air. At the top of the highest hill, overlooking the city, stood a tall singular tower that shone in the sunlight.

“This is…incredible,” Weiss marveled at the pristine architecture passing below them. The jet began to slow and steadily descend, aiming towards a circular pad a short distance from the tall tower they had spotted earlier. An assortment of women, a few on horseback, were already awaiting them. Most of them were wearing armor, similar to Diana’s and Donna’s, only less colorful and appearing lighter. Each of them carried a round shield in their left hand, their right hand holding either a long spear or a short sword. A few more women were standing apart from the others, equipped with bows and standing at the ready.

The jet finally landed with a soft hum, the interior materializing once again. Smiling to herself, Diana prepared to turn around and welcome the teenagers to their home, only to be greeted by the sound of gagging and the sight of Ruby, Yang, Pyrrha, and Donna assisting a green-faced Jaune.

“There, there,” Pyrrha comforted him as he struggled to keep his breakfast down. Donna was currently fishing through the jet’s cabinets, pulling out a crystal vial and handing it to the boy.

“Here, this should help,” she said as Jaune wolfed the contents down. At once, the greenness of his skin began to subside and his breathing returned to normal.

“I…am so sorry for that…” he gasped as Pyrrha patted his back and the others looked at him in slight concern, Yang taking a few noticeable steps back. Embarrassed, Jaune rubbed the back of his neck and looked towards the two Amazons. “I get airsick. I was able to hold it in until the jet went completely invisible, then it…”

“There’s no need to apologize,” Diana interrupted him with a raised hand. Seeing how he was obviously self-conscious about it, she smiled warmly and patted his shoulder. “There’s no need to be ashamed. Lots of people get airsick.”

“ _Thank_ you!”

* * *

Outside of the Invisible Jet, the large group of Amazons stood ready at attention. They were focused around a single figure, a woman wearing regal gold armor with a helmet that covered her long black hair. While on the surface she appeared calm and collected, on the inside she couldn’t help but feel a sense of trepidation. But, as Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta couldn’t afford to show that feeling. However, she could afford to let out a warm smile as the hatch opened to reveal her daughters, their guests following after them.

“Hail!” her Amazonian Guards shouted and snapped to attention, keeping a wary eye on the outsiders behind them. Diana and her entourage ignored it, although Jaune and Ren couldn’t help but notice the annoyed and suspicious looks several of the Amazons were giving them. As none of them made any moves towards the boys, and knowing the likely reason why they would be suspicious of men on their island home, they were willing to let it be. The group finally stopped as Diana kneeled in front of Queen Hippolyta, prompting the others to do the same.

“Rise, children,” Hippolyta commanded. At once, they all rose to their feet, RWBY and JNPR making sure to display proper respect to a monarch, only to relax as Hippolyta smiled warmly and clasped Diana on the shoulder. The two then hugged one another and smiled. “It’s good to see you, Diana.”

“I missed you too, mother,” Diana replied as they broke away. She and Donna then stepped to the side, the Wonder Woman throwing her arm to the side and gesturing towards the two teams of ex-students. “I’d like to introduce you to my new friends.” At being referred to, Ren and Jaune bowed while the others curtsied. Well, most of them did. Ruby couldn’t seem to decide which one she wanted to do, and ended up with an awkward combination of both, somehow managing to keep herself from tipping over in the process.

“It’s an honor to meet you, your Highness,” Weiss declared as she rose from her curtsy. Hippolyta nodded at her formality then stepped forward.

“The honor is mine, Weiss Schnee. Any friend of my daughter is an honored guest of Themyscira.” If Weiss was surprised that the Queen knew her name, she did a remarkable job of not showing it. A sympathetic look then crossed Hippolyta’s face as she put her hand on the heiress’ shoulder. “Diana informed me of what happened to your home. You have my and Themyscira’s deepest sympathies.”

“I… Thank you,” Weiss said with a somber expression. The pain of losing Remnant, despite everything they gave to defend it, still ached in her heart. The League was helping in dulling it, especially with what could only be described as group therapy sessions with Diana, but it was still there. Weiss took the time to look around to see that, as the Queen described, the Amazons were looking at her and her friends with sympathetic looks. Hippolyta then stepped back and adopted a more regal posture, directing everyone’s attention back towards her.

“As honored guests, the ancient and sacred right of hospitium is granted to you. You are welcome to partake in Themyscira as you please. Donna,” the Wonder Girl perked up at the mention of her name, “will be your guide during your stay. Please ask her any questions you may have.”

“Thank you,” Pyrrha bowed again then turned to face Donna. Straightening herself, Donna smiled and looked over the huntsmen and huntresses.

“Please, follow me!” Donna declared as she began to walk away, the teenagers excitedly following after her. The assorted Amazons could hear their excited chatter as they descended into the city before finally fading away, leaving only the Queen, her guards, and Diana. When Diana turned to face her mother, her happy expression turned into one much more serious, and Hippolyta sighed.

“Leave us,” she ordered to her guards. At once, the Amazons thumped their fists to their chests as a salute and marched away, leaving Diana and Hippolyta by themselves on a seemingly empty air pad. A moment of intense silence descended between the two women before Diana began to speak.

“Is it still there?” she asked tersely.

“Yes,” Hippolyta answered immediately. “I checked it myself personally as soon as word arrived.”

“Show me.” Had it been anyone else making demands of the Queen, the person would have been punished for the disrespect. But as it was her own daughter, Hippolyta easily accepted and the two walked towards the large spire, passing by a pair of guards who saluted as they passed. The two women descended down a large stairwell along the wall, descending deeper and deeper until they came across a large bronze doorway. More guards stood at attention in front of it, clad in a full set of armor and armed with sword and shield.

“My Queen,” one of the guards said. “Do you require access to the vault?”

“Yes, I do,” Hippolyta answered. The guards nodded then looked at each other. They then turned to face the bronze door, pulling out a pair of keys and slotting them into identical keyholes. Looking at each other one last time, the two turned the keys at the exact same time with a resounding click. They then grabbed hold of two handlebars on opposite ends of the vault door and heaved. The heavy doors groaned as they scraped the stone floor, the Amazons straining as they continued to pull. Finally, after considerable effort, the doors were fully opened, revealing the contents inside. Without saying a word, mother and daughter walked inside and examined the contents, finding a large assortment of weapons and magical artifacts. A lead box containing the head of Medusa, the sword Harpe mounted next to it, the Aegis mounted on the wall across from the Armor and Shield of Achilles, even Heracles’ Club. Several of the most powerful weapons her people ever encountered, ones too dangerous to let loose on the world, but Diana ignored all of them in favor of a single book.

“Here it is,” Hippolyta declared as she took the book in hand, carefully wiping off the accumulated dust and handing it to Diana. Carefully, Diana took the object and opened it, revealing the wrinkled pages of Doctor Maru’s chemical journal. Everything was exactly as she left it when she entrusted her mother to safeguard its contents.

That only made her frown deeper.

“I’ve personally interviewed every single person with access to the Armory,” Hippolyta revealed, “investigated any evidence of theft, and found nothing. No one had entered the vault before I had it opened.”

“Then tell me, mother,” Diana replied, closing the book as she turned to face her queen. “How did Crane learn about the formula Maru and Ludendorff concocted? I destroyed all of the other samples, burned the rest of Maru’s notes except for her journal, so how can he have rediscovered it? The Americans and the Soviets tried to recreate it for decades, and they never got close. Crane, however, just shows up with it not only mastered but also changed to suit his own twisted ends.”

Hippolyta sighed at Diana’s pointed stare. “I do not know, Diana, but I am as alarmed about this as you are. All I know is that none of my Amazons leaked this knowledge to him nor anyone else.”

“Are you sure of that? You and I both know that there are several who would be willing to strike back at Man’s World.” Hippolyta’s face warped into a frown.

“I know that, which is why I interrogated them first. They were just as insulted as I am at the accusation.”

“I meant no offense, mother.” Diana quickly backtracked, regret on her face. After a moment, Hippolyta sighed.

“I know.” Hippolyta then put her hand on Diana’s shoulder in comfort, to which Diana clasped it with her own. “Is there the possibility of him simply rediscovering it on his own? He is a noted chemist after all.”

“No.” Diana shook her head. “The most anyone got out of him was that he did not discover the chemical on his own. Said he ‘couldn’t take responsibility for its creation, only its modification’. I would have gone to him myself and used the Lasso on him, but his lawyers prevented me from doing so.”

“Hmm,” Hippolyta frowned. “We must get to the bottom of this. Someone on this island gave Crane the contents of this vault. They must be found, not only for Man’s World but also for the safety of Themyscira.”

“We’ll find them,” Diana declared with absolute certainty. As they exited the vault, the doors being shut behind them, Diana couldn’t help but wonder how RWBY and JNPR were doing. Hopefully they were having a better time than she was.

* * *

Ruby marveled at the large stone buildings around them as she and her friends followed Donna through Themyscira. The sounds of women working filled the air. Blacksmiths hammered away at bronze and iron tools, weavers and merchants bartered their goods with farmers and fishers. The atmosphere was serene and peaceful, and Ruby took in a deep breath to absorb it all.

“This is our main market,” Donna revealed as they passed by a few more stalls. A starry eyed Ruby and Jaune looked at the swords and spears at a weapons’ stand while Pyrrha looked among offerings of fruit. Blake was currently standing in front of a particularly large fish, her eyes wide and mouth wet, and Yang was checking out some armor. Nora had dragged Ren to a jewelry stand, happily trying on an assortment of gold and jeweled pieces while an amused Ren merely shook his head with a smile.

“Interesting,” Weiss hummed and turned to face Donna. “I’ve been curious about something. Does Themyscira get everything it needs from this island, or does trade happen to make up the difference?”

“We do have some trade with Man’s World,” Donna answered, “but it is limited to specifically approved entities and in only certain quantities. Otherwise, we get everything we need here.”

“How? I mean, you all have been on the same ten square mile island for the past couple thousand years. How have you not exhausted Themyscira’s resources yet?”

“Well, for one we don’t have the same over-consumption problem that plagues Man’s World as of late,” Donna replied with a smirk, “and our population is much lower. As such, we don’t use much of Paradise Island’s resources to begin with.”

“I thought this island was called Themyscira?” Yang suddenly called out while trying on a pair of bronze braces.

“They’re one and the same, actually. The island itself is called Paradise Island, but the city is Themyscira. The two names are used interchangeably.”

“Ah.” Yang nodded her head and continued to inspect the bracers, humming to herself in appreciation.

“Anyway,” Donna continued, “Themyscira itself is rich in resources. Deep veins of ore run through our mountains, schools of fish swim freely within our waters, and our soil is fertile. Thanks to careful management, and the graces of the Gods, we’ve been able to ensure that our resources don’t run dry.”

“Hmm,” Weiss hummed. As the daughter of Jacques Schnee, whether she liked it or not, she was educated on economics from a very young age as part of her training to become heiress. As much as she may detest her father, Weiss knew that he was a very good businessman, and that trait followed her. So, in her mind, what Donna was telling her did not make much sense. A society could not remain in complete isolation from the outside world and become as prosperous as Themyscira obviously was. Trade was essential, and with Paradise Island only ten square miles large, with double that in terms of surrounding sea, there simply wasn’t enough resources to sustain a single city state for thousands of years. Part of her wanted to tell Donna this, but Weiss instead chose to move past it.

“Ooh!” she heard Ruby say. The excitable girl was still at a weapons stand, currently practicing with a few swords. The metal sung through the air, a slight whoosh marking its passage as Ruby swung towards a wooden practice dummy. “This is really well made! The weight is perfect, the handle fits into my hand flawlessly, and I can’t even see a warp in the blade! This is really good, Io!”

“Thank you. It’s always nice to talk to others about my work,” the blacksmith Io replied as she continued to hammer away at a glowing bar. The woman was large, even by Amazon standards, with short black brown hair constrained by a headband. Weiss could feel the impacts Io made as she struck the sword, even from where she was. When Io finished hammering the sword into the proper shape she wanted, she grabbed it with tongs and quenched it in a pool of water, releasing a large cloud of steam.

“What’s it made out of?”

“Mostly enchanted steel and bronze,” Io revealed while wiping away the sweat from her brow. “Our priests bless the alloys with the gifts of the Gods, then I and my fellow sisters work the metal into whatever is desired.”

“Hmm,” Ruby hummed as she put the sword away and inspected a spear. “How strong are they?”

“Very. They are more than a match for the weapons of Man’s World,” Io boasted with a proud smile. That smile then became more forlorn as she looked at an armor set across from her. “They’re not always strong enough, though. For all our strength, we are still vulnerable.”

“I know what you mean,” Ruby stated, thinking back to how easily Brainiac had defeated her and her friends. She then looked at the smithy and began swaying back and forth, her head down and hands pressed behind her back. “Um… Can I…”

“Yes, you can help if you wish.” Io laughed at the enthusiastic look on Ruby’s face as she sped over in a burst of rose petals.

“Well, I can see Ruby’s having fun,” Donna remarked as she and Weiss watched the women work the forge. Looking around, they saw that Yang was following a group of Amazons to a nearby training ground, talking about proving which of them was the strongest. Nora had run off into the forest, dragging Ren along with her, while Jaune and Pyrrha were patiently waiting for Donna and Weiss to notice them.

“Hey, Donna,” Jaune asked, “is it okay if Pyrrha and I check out your arena?”

“Go right ahead,” Donna replied with a smile. With a happy nod, the two partners turned and left, talking among themselves like the good friends they were.

“I am so happy that things aren’t awkward between them anymore,” Weiss revealed as the two disappeared behind a building. Donna looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

“What do you mean? They seem to get along perfectly.”

“Well, you would be correct there,” Weiss admitted with a chuckle. “But, as it turns out, Pyrrha…wanted to be more than friends, but was too shy and considerate to admit it.”

“Oh.” Donna thought for a moment then nodded. “Yeah, I can see how that could get awkward.” She had direct experience with that. Seeing Dick and Kori dance around each other for years was a sight to behold, and the less said about Garfield and Raven the better.

“Yeah, but then Pyrrha accidentally blurted out how she felt out because of Diana’s Lasso.” Donna paused at Weiss’ statement then winced.

“Hera’s breath, what happened after that?”

“They practically ran out of the room, they were so embarrassed. Didn’t speak to each other for the rest of the day. Couldn’t even make eye contact.” Donna cringed even more. Of all the ways to admit something that important, having it forced upon you via Lasso of Truth must have been humiliating. But, seeing how everything between them was well again, Donna was happy for them. She then looked around, failing to spot a familiar set of cat ears.

“Where is…?” she asked, just as Weiss noticed Blake’s distinct absence.

“I’m right here,” Blake suddenly called out right from behind them, startling the Amazon and heiress. They turned around sharply to see a smirk on Blake’s face, holding a kebabbed smoked blue fish in one hand and a plate of leafy greens in the other.

“How long were you here?” Weiss asked, clearly annoyed while ignoring the muffled laughs of Ruby and a few surrounding Amazons.

“Long enough.” Blake smiled triumphantly as she bit into her fish while Weiss sighed in exasperation and Donna laughed.

* * *

Yang crouched down and moved in a circle as her opponent, a long-haired Amazon who appeared to be the same age named Europa, did the same. Their bodies shone in a sheen of sweat, their breathing heavy and ragged while they watched the other for any signs of weakness. Europa’s brown hair was covered in dust and sand, heavy with sweat, and bruises were visible along her arms and chest. Then, after a moment, the two women charged each other with a yell. Yang threw a haymaker at Europa, only for the woman to duck underneath and deck Yang across the jaw. She retaliated with a light jab of her own, striking the woman in the face and making her stumble back. Grabbing her across the shoulder, Yang began pummeling Europa’s chest with her free hand, forcing the Amazon to bring up her arms to defend herself. After a few moments, Europa managed to grab Yang’s oncoming fist and wrap her arm around it, bringing her other arm around Yang’s hold and breaking it. Yang was then thrown off of the Amazon, sending her stumbling back and unable to prevent Europa from trying to tackle her to the ground.

As the Amazon made contact, Yang grunted as the air was briefly knocked out of her but was able to keep her footing. Her bare feet dragged sand as the Amazon pushed her towards the edge of the ring, but Yang twisted her leg and planted herself firmly. Seeing how she wasn’t moving anymore, Europa began punching Yang’s side with her left arm, each blow making Yang wince while she herself elbowed the woman’s back in kind. After a few moments of mutual struggle, Yang shifted tactics and leaned forward, grabbing hold of Europa’s waist and lifted her off the ground. Surprised, Europa’s legs flailed as she tried to kick Yang, only for the effort to be futile as Yang twisted and slammed her on the ground. The wind knocked out of her, she was helpless as Yang grappled the Amazon from behind, leaving both of them lying on the ground and Yang wrapping her arms around the Amazon’s arms and neck. For several moments, Europa struggled, trying to break free from Yang’s tightening grip before sighing and tapping the brawler’s arm twice. At once, Yang let go and released the Amazon from her hold, allowing them both a chance to collapse onto the sand and breathe deeply.

“I…win…” Yang gasped while throwing her fist into the air in victory. Around her, a small crowd of Amazons cheered at the warriors’ performance while a few went to help them to their feet. Yang smiled at the Amazons and turned to face Europa, her face a mixture of disappointment and regard. The two stared at each other before they clasped their arms together in a show of respect, something the Amazons around them appreciated. Another Amazon tossed Yang a thick cloth, which she immediately used to begin drying herself off while she walked to a nearby stone bench. Plopping down on it, Yang felt a sense of relief wash over her.

“That was a spectacular match,” she heard someone say. She craned her head to see a red-haired woman standing next to her, offering a cup of what Yang could only assume was either water or some of that famous Themysciran wine. Not caring what it was, Yang took it and saw that it was indeed water, which she happily began to gulp down.

“Thanks,” Yang said as she wiped some excess water from her chin. “Have to admit, I haven’t had a match that hard in quite a while.” Her trouncing at the hands of Brainiac, in Yang’s mind, did not count. That was less a match and more lambs to the slaughter, something Pyrrha agreed with readily.

“With what I can see, it’s not hard to imagine why.” The Amazon laughed and gestured towards the stone bench. “May I?”

“Sure.” Yang scooted over and tapped the stonework, granting the Amazon permission to sit next to her. With a smile on her face, the Amazon did so and turned to look at the wrestling match going on in front of them.

“Kassandra,” the Amazon suddenly said, extending her hand to Yang who gladly took it. They shook and then turned back to watch the match. “How are you enjoying Themyscira, Yang?”

“I can see why this place is called Paradise Island,” Yang replied as she took another drink of water. “This place is perfect. Crystal clear water, perfect temperature, great food. I have half a mind to retire here one day. Build a little beach house where I can just lounge around with a little umbrella drink in my hand.”

“That sounds lovely,” Kassandra stated with a warm smile, which Yang returned. It was then that Kassandra turned to study Yang more closely, causing the blonde to raise her eyebrow in confusion.

“Something on my face?” she asked, and Kassandra shook her head.

“No, just trying to figure something out.” Kassandra paused as she continued to look her over.

“And what is it that you’re trying to figure out?” Yang asked, wondering exactly what the Amazon was getting at.

“Your lineage, actually. I’m trying to decide which of the Gods you are descended from. It’s odd. You have the strength of Athena, glowing hair like Eos, and beauty granted by Aphrodite herself. I can’t decide which one suits you more.”

A pause descended over the group before Yang began to blush heavily, realizing exactly what was going on. Kassandra wasn’t actually studying her; she was hitting on her.

“Oh, uh…heh, thank you…that is very… Whew, is it hot out here…?” Yang stammered while rubbing the back of her neck, an action that only seemed to make Kassandra smile wider. After a moment, Yang regained her composure and coughed. “Well, I have to say that I’m…very flattered. Much better than what I usually get, at least. Normally I get clichés like “Did it hurt when you fell from heaven?”…”

“Knowing you, you would land on your feet,” Kassandra immediately responded, making Yang laugh awkwardly.

“Heh, heh… Well, Kassandra, you are a very beautiful woman, and I’m sure any girl would be lucky to have you.” Kassandra beamed at the response. “But, I don’t…really jump to dating someone I’ve just met…” Another moment of silence ensued between the two of them, one much more awkward than before as a surprised look crossed the Amazon’s face.

“Oh.” Kassandra stated before a look of shock crossed her face. “Oh, I am so sorry! I just thought…!”

“No, no! It’s fine, really!” Yang quickly cut the regretful Amazon off. “I was just surprised, that’s all. I’m more flattered than anything.”

“Are you sure?” Kassandra asked, and Yang nodded. Sighing, the Amazon rubbed her forehead while closing her eyes. Yang took the time to look around and saw that a few of the Amazons had disappointed looks on their faces, not at her but more towards a lost chance. She was suddenly reminded that she was on an island with only women, and that realization explained a lot of the looks and sideways glances she had been receiving all afternoon. She then looked back to Kassandra, who no longer had a sad look on her face but one of acceptance.

“You alright?” Yang asked, and the Amazon nodded.

“Yes. Embarrassed, more than anything, but I’m fine. Sorry if I made you uncomfortable.” Yang waved it off.

“Again, no problem at all.” Kassandra nodded at Yang’s words then got to her feet. “You don’t have to leave.”

“No, I have to get back to the docks anyway.” Kassandra shrugged as she turned towards the docks, mumbling to herself about something called Clio’s Treatises.

Yang watched her leave then turned back to the other Amazons, most of whom were continuing to spectate the spars before them. Shrugging to herself, Yang took another gulp of water and, when the victorious Amazon challenged her, got out of her seat and confidently stepped forth to meet it.

* * *

“Ren, come on!” Nora called out from high up on the cliff face, her boyfriend a significant distance below them.

“Why are we doing this, again?” he called up as he carefully climbed his way up.

“Silly Ren! Donna said that up here is the greatest view of the sunset, and you and I are going to see it!” Nora revealed as she continued to scale the cliff. “So, hurry up!”

“Yes, Nora.” Ren sighed, a smile on his face as he carefully climbed upwards. They had been in the forests surrounding Themyscira for the past several hours, observing the local wildlife and basking in the island’s natural beauty, as well as simply finding comfort with each other.

He thought back to how this latest development between his and Nora’s relationship came to pass. If he was honest with himself, he didn’t believe that it was the Lasso that pushed the two from ‘together’ to ‘together-together’, as Nora was fond of saying. No, it was something else. The loss of Remnant forced him to reevaluate everything he had, everything they had, and that introspection led him to the realization that he couldn’t take the time he had with the most important person in his life for granted.

“Ren, come on! It’s about to start!” Hearing Nora’s shouting and knowing that she was likely already at the top, Ren pushed his thoughts aside. Grabbing hold of another handhold, Ren grunted as he continued his climb at a much faster pace. The sun was beginning to set, and he wanted to see the Themysciran sunset as much as Nora did. After a few more minutes of arduous climbing, marked by a couple of near misses, Ren finally reached the top. Nora was waiting for him, crouched down and holding out her hand for his. Ren took her hand with his own and together hoisted him up to the ledge. As he panted in exertion, Nora patted Ren’s shoulder and took hold of his hand and walked him through a natural stone archway overlooking the surrounding sea. True to her word, the sun was indeed beginning to set, and the two sat down on the opposite ledge, their legs hanging off the side.

They sat together in content silence as the sun continued to descend, Nora resting her head on Ren’s shoulder. Their hands were gently clasped together, and neither said anything. For there was nothing to be said.

They didn’t speak again until the sun finally disappeared, the night sky quickly filling with stars. Bonfires lit up around Themyscira, both in the city but also in certain temples around the forest, telling the two of them exactly where they were.

“That was nice,” Ren admitted as he and Nora stood up and stretched. He then looked down and hummed, wondering exactly how to get down, when he heard Nora cough. Turning around, he saw her basking in the moonlight while smiling at him, standing dangerously close to the edge. At once Ren knew exactly what she was suggesting they do to get down.

“Nora, no.”

“Nora, yes!” With that happy declaration, Nora leaped off the mountain peak to the forest below, causing Ren to run over and look to the side. He saw her scraping her hand against the stone cliff, gouging a large line in the rock and slowing her fall. Shaking his head yet smiling to himself, Ren followed his better half and dropped down to join her.

* * *

Diana didn’t rejoin her sister and guests until well into supper. Their meals were simple, cooked fish served with soup, bread, and cups of water. They were chatting loudly among themselves when Diana finally entered into the large guest house the queen had set aside for their stay.

“Diana!” Ruby announced as the others all waved her in, and the Wonder Woman smiled and waved back.

“Hello, everyone. How was your day in the city?”

“It was awesome!” Yang declared. “We toured the city, checked out the marketplace, rode some horses, sparred a bit, it was great!”

“I made a sword!” Ruby excitedly pointed to a pristine bronze sword leaning against the wall. Everyone smiled at her infectious excitement.

“I browsed Themyscira’s library,” Blake spoke. “I enjoyed myself greatly.”

“It was indeed quite enjoyable,” Weiss admitted with her typical formal tone. She had spent most of her time in the marketplace, interacting with the traders and simply learning about life on Themyscira. Occasionally, an Amazon would try to flirt with her, but the heiress made sure to gently shoot them down. The fact that it was never the same admirer more than once helped to mitigate her customary cold shoulder. From what she had heard, Blake and Yang had the same thing happen to them.

“I spent a lot of time in the arena, actually,” Jaune stated as he finished chewing on a loaf of bread. “Got my butt kicked a lot, so all in all it reminded me a lot of Beacon.”

“I participated in there as well,” Pyrrha declared with a warm smile. The spars in there ended up attracting a substantial audience by the end, and it reminded her of her tournaments back in Mistral. As much as she grew to hate the attention they gave her, she always enjoyed the act of participating in them.

“Participated?” Jaune laughed. “Pyrrha, you did so well in there that you got invited to a tournament being held tomorrow! You and Yang both!”

“Is that so?” Diana asked with an amused look on her face.

“It’s true,” Yang admitted with a confident shrug, nodding her head while Pyrrha merely let out a small smile.

“I’m sure that you two will have a wonderful time in there.” Diana turned to Donna. “Who else will be participating tomorrow?”

Donna tapped her chin in thought before nodding her head. “I heard that Artemis will be participating, actually.”

“Artemis? Who’s that?” Nora asked.

“Artemis,” Donna began to explain, “is the greatest warrior on Themyscira, second only to Diana. She’s actually from our sister city of Bana-Mighdall, which only recently reintegrated with us over the past few years.”

“Oh, you mean that there are multiple Amazon cities?” Weiss asked with no small amount of curiosity.

“Two, as a matter of fact. We only rediscovered each other a decade ago, when I came across the Bana-Mighdall while trying to find the Bow of Ra.” Diana paused while looking to the side before looking back at them, a regretful look on her face. “Unfortunately, the city was destroyed during Darkseid’s invasion, and as such I led the survivors here.”

Everyone looked up at the mention of Darkseid and shivered. Superman had described Darkseid intimately with the huntsmen and huntresses, as well as the world he hailed from. A New God from the planet Apokolips, Darkseid was the living embodiment of evil and tyranny. He had invaded the planet almost a decade ago in search of something called the Anti-Life Equation, and it took the combined militaries of the world along with Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman working together to drive him off. That was when Diana became Wonder Woman once more, and afterwards set the stage for what would eventually become the Justice League a few years later.

“Diana, tell me,” Ruby asked tentatively. “The Mother Box that brought us to you… Darkseid made that, right?”

“Yes, he did.” Diana nodded grimly. “How Brainiac got it, I do not know. What I do know is that it brought you here instead of to him, and for that I am eternally grateful.”

“Same here,” Ren said with a frown. From what he knew, if there was anyone that could be considered worse than Brainiac, it was Darkseid. Then a thought sprung to mind and he turned to look at the Wonder Woman. “Where is the Mother Box, actually?”

“We gave it to S.T.A.R. Labs, actually. Part of the agreement the Justice League has with the United Nations in exchange for us continuing to operate.” Diana then sat down at an empty seat, a meal already waiting for her. “Well, enough about subjects like these. Let’s eat, shall we?”

The others agreed with her in gusto.

* * *

A few hours after supper, everyone but Diana was safely tucked into bed and asleep. As much as she tried, Diana couldn’t shake the dark feeling that had overcome her. The search to find who had leaked the formula to Crane had proven fruitless. Even with the use of her Lasso, they found no culprit. It didn’t make any sense. It was obvious that Crane didn’t discover the formula on his own, which meant that he had to have gotten the information from someone, yet the only place he could have gotten it was here.

“How did he get it?” she asked herself before sighing. Down on the street below, she saw a few Amazons on patrol around the guest house, many of them saluting her when they noticed her gaze on them. Diana saluted back before turning back inside, dousing the guesthouse’s fires as she went with a jug of water. Pausing over the last one, she sighed to herself yet again then moved to pour.

“ _Oh, Diana. Even now, you are still so naïve_ ,” she heard a voice call out to her. A cold child went up her spine.

‘ _It can’t be_ ,’ Diana thought as she turned around to the entryway. She was greeted by a dark silhouette of a man, his features obscured by shadow. He was wearing thick armor, topped with a spiked helm. A cape billowed behind him, and glowing red eyes stared at her from the shadows.

“Ares…” Diana muttered. The figure said nothing, which only served to enrage the Amazon. With a shout, she wrested the sword Ruby had made from where it leaned against the wall and charged at the figure, only for him to disappear into smoke as she neared him. She looked around frantically, trying to see where he had gone. Behind her, she heard the sound of running feet as Donna, RWBY, JNPR, and a handful of guards rushed towards her.

“What is it? What happened?” Donna asked while clutching a sword. Diana said nothing, instead looking down at her feet in trembling fury. Everyone’s attention drifted down towards it, and the Amazons gasped at what they saw.

Lying at Diana’s feet, burned into the ground, was a burned visage of a circle with an arrow emerging from it.

[~][~]


	7. Olympians

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yang and Pyrrha participate in a tournament hosted by the Amazons, all while under the shadow of a violent god's apparent threat.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 7: Olympians **

* * *

Ares, the God of War. From what Weiss had read about Greek myths, and from what the Amazons had told her, he was one of the Twelve Olympians, the major deities of the Greek Pantheon who lived on Mount Olympus. Each Olympian represented something either from the natural world or a societal concept. As his title would suggest, he represented war. It powered him, gave him life, and he would, in turn, spread it across the world.

And now he was on the island with them. An actual God was on her doorstep, not even twenty feet away.

The thought terrified Weiss more than she would like to admit, something her friends readily agreed with. None of them were particularly religious, at most believing that if the Brothers had existed, they had long since abandoned their home. They shares similar opinions on other figures like the Dust Groom and Ash Bride. Ares’ appearance was a marked development from that status quo. The only reason why they weren’t freaking out more was because Diana and Donna had taken the time to calm them down.

Although, judging by the look on her face, Diana was feeling enough for all of them combined.

Diana had sent a few guards to both spread the word and get her mother. Within ten minutes, the entire island lit up with bonfires and the sounds of marching feet and clattering bronze. Hundreds of Amazons, hastily dressed in their armor, had begun to rush towards the center of the island, Diana and themselves leading them from the front. They were led to a large cave, the mouth like an open maw and flanked by statues of the gods and goddesses of Olympus. At the top of the cave entrance was a statue of five goddesses and as they descended into the cave, they came into a large room. The rocky floor gave way to tiled stonework, a multitude of columns reaching up towards the natural ceiling. Torches washed the room in orange light, and a large bonfire kept the room warm, the smoke drifting up through a hole in the ceiling. Several Amazons were already inside, their weapons pointed at a large stone slab, held against what could only be an opening by heavy bronze clamps.

As more and more Amazons filled the room and the cave entrance, each of them pointed their weapons at the stone slab, prompting RWBY and JNPR to do the same with their own. Despite not knowing exactly what that slab was for, it obviously spooked the Amazons, and as such caution was warranted.

“Egeria, anything?” Diana demanded one of the Amazons already in the room. Egeria, a woman of tall stature, turned around and shook her head.

“Nothing as of yet,” she revealed, “but Ares undoubtedly has his sight on the Doom Door.”

“Donna, what’s the Doom Door?” Jaune whispered to the Wonder Girl, careful to keep his voice low.

“The entrance to the Underworld,” she whispered back. “It keeps the monsters of Hades at bay, preventing them from running amok in the world. All Amazons are sworn to defend it, keep it locked and prevent anything from escaping it.”

“…oh.” Jaune’s voice went quiet as he stared at the Doom Door, beads of sweat beginning to drip down his brow. A quick look showed that, out of his friends, only Pyrrha, Yang, and Ren could say they were completely calm and collected. Blake’s ears were twitching more than usual, Weiss’ grip on Myrtenaster was intense, Ruby was fidgeting on her feet, and Nora’s usual excitement was replaced with an intensity not usually seen on the girl.

A sound of parting soldiers announced Hippolyta’s arrival. The Amazon Queen strode to the front of the assembled warriors, clad in her golden armor, sword in hand. Her expression was that of utter seriousness. Given the situation, it wasn’t hard to understand exactly why that would be the case. Taking a hard look at Doom’s Doorway, Hippolyta turned to a dark-skinned woman to her side, a maroon cloak draped around her dark red armor.

“Phillipus,” Hippolyta began, “I want twenty Amazons guarding the Doorway at all times. Let _nothing_ get out. I want an additional hundred outside of the cave entrance.”

“Yes, my Queen.” Phillipus saluted Hippolyta. She then turned to a group of Amazons and began barking orders at them while Hippolyta turned to her daughters.

“Diana, Donna, a word,” she requested. At once, the princesses nodded and followed their mother to the far side of the room, a wave of the Queen’s hand staying everyone from following. Once they were alone, Hippolyta turned to her daughters and sighed.

“Diana, please tell me my suspicions are unfounded,” she asked. When Diana regretfully nodded, the Queen groaned and shook her head. “Athena’s grace…”

“My thoughts exactly.” Diana’s expression hardened. “Ares is the one who gave Crane the formula. There can be no other answer as to how he got it.”

“But how?” Donna asked, her voice much more alarmed than the others. “I thought you killed Ares?”

“I did,” Diana revealed with a scowl. She remembered the fight well. It had destroyed an airfield, killed dozens of German soldiers, and ended with the man she loved sacrificing himself to end the war. Ares died soon after, Diana killing him with her own godly power.

Unfortunately, it didn’t appear to have stuck.

“Then how did he come back?” Donna asked, only for Diana to go silent. Looking at her older sister for an answer, Diana shook her head, making the Wonder Girl sigh. As much as she idolized her sister, Donna always got the sense that Diana often hid things from her, mostly concerning Diana’s time before and during the Second World War. Donna wasn’t blind to how awful those conflicts were, and her time with the Titans showed her the darker side of Man’s World at nearly every turn, so she would respect her sister’s decision.

“It doesn’t matter,” Hippolyta declared. “What does matter is the safety of Themyscira. To that end, I will be canceling the festivities tomorrow.”

“What!? Mother!” Donna objected. “You can’t do that!”

“As Queen, I am well within my right to do so,” Hippolyta reminded her daughter, her tone commanding but not angry. “I don’t like it any more than you do, but the safety of my people and the Doorway must come first.”

“I disagree,” Diana spoke up, drawing her family’s attention. Seeing this, Diana straightened herself and looked directly into her mother’s eyes. “Mother, if we cancel the festival tomorrow, what exactly will we be accomplishing?”

“The protection of Themyscira,” Hippolyta answered, slightly confused as to where her firstborn was going with this.

“No, that is not what we will be accomplishing.” Diana shook her head. “Mother, Ares is not a God who acts directly. He plays upon people’s fears, whispers into their minds, all to drive conflict. Him showing himself on this island is another of his tricks. He’s trying to get us to act on his whims, to prove that he is superior to us. By canceling the festival tomorrow, we won’t be protecting Themyscira, we’ll be giving Ares a _win_.”

Hippolyta went silent at Diana’s declaration, thinking her words over. She knew that Diana had firsthand experience at dealing with Ares, so she could trust her judgment. The more she thought of it, the more she came around to her daughter’s thinking. She was right, as much as she didn’t want to admit it. With a sigh, the Queen nodded to her daughter in acceptance.

“Alright, I concede to your point.” Hippolyta nodded. “I will, however, be increasing the guard around the Doorway as a precaution.”

“I’d be alarmed if you didn’t,” Diana stated with a smile. With one final nod from the Queen, Hippolyta dismissed her daughters and turned to face her gathered Amazons while Diana and Donna returned to RWBY and JNPR. For a moment, Diana had thought the group would be curious as to what had been discussed, but the look on Blake’s face conveyed the sense that the Faunus had heard everything. All of them had grim looks on their faces, but ones that also showed they weren’t willing to let this development get the better of them.

“So, I imagine you already heard everything,” Diana asked, to which Blake nodded. “In the future, be careful not to eavesdrop on private conversations… Unless you are on a mission, in which case go ahead.”

“Of course,” Blake said, her ears slightly drooping. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to…”

“It’s fine, no harm done.” Diana flashed a warm smile. “Donna, please take them back to the guest house to get some rest. You all will need it for tomorrow.”

“You got it,” Donna replied with a smile. She beckoned the huntsmen and huntresses to follow her, the gathered Amazons parting for them as they passed. Once they exited the cave and left the small army behind, Ruby paused and looked behind them in worry.

“Ruby, is something wrong?” Donna asked in slight concern.

“No, but…” Ruby sighed. “I feel like we should be in there, not fighting in a tournament.”

“Nonsense.” Donna shook her head. “You are Themyscira’s guests. We cannot ask you to help defend her. Not when her daughters are more than able to do so.”

“I know…but still…” Ruby kicked her feet, causing Donna to frown slightly before shaking her head.

“Trust me, I’m in the same boat as you. Still, I have faith in my sisters, and as Diana said, we can’t let Ares win.” Donna then smiled more brightly. “So cheer up. Everything will be alright, you’ll see.”

Ruby looked at the Amazon for a moment then sighed and smiled. “Okay.”

Donna smiled back at the reaper’s declaration. At that, the group continued down the path towards the guest house. Despite Donna’s words of encouragement, however, they couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease, like Ares’ sighting was an omen of things to come.

Whatever it was, they all vowed they would be ready for it.

* * *

Jaune got up early the next morning, the sunlight beaming into his face from the glassless window of the guest house. Noticing that his friends were still asleep, he quietly got out of his bed and crept towards the bedroom door, grabbing Crocea Mors and his regular clothes on his way out. He changed out of his sleepwear, missing his blue Pumpkin Pete onesie in the process,  then left the house. He paused at the sight of the burned Sign of Mars on the doorstep and frowned. Jaune had come to learn that the symbol was a representation of Ares, and it served to remind him just how close the deity was to all of them.

“Brothers, or is it gods now? Ugg, this is so confusing,” he grumbled to himself as he continued on his way to Themyscira. His thoughts ran wild with the events of the past month. To say that his life had been a roller coaster would have been an understatement. So many things had been thrown at him that it was almost overwhelming at times.

His thoughts drifted back to the worst two days in his life and he shuddered. The pain of losing Remnant was still there, a dull ache in his heart, but at the same time, it was growing duller and duller by the day. It no longer affected him as much as it did during that first week. Being with the League, it gave him a goal to work towards. He had always wanted to be a hero, follow in his family’s footsteps, but it seemed as though fate had other plans. Pyrrha and Jaune actually had quite a few discussions on that very same topic.

“ _Jaune, do you believe in destiny_?” she asked him a few days into their training with Batman, before the whole debacle with Scarecrow. He had told her that he didn’t know how to answer that, even though in actuality he didn’t really believe. How Remnant getting destroyed would be anyone’s destiny and not the actions of a deranged madman was beyond him, but he would never tell his partner that.

She had told him that to her, destiny wasn’t some predetermined outcome that one could never escape from. Rather, it was a goal that a person worked towards their entire life. She always felt that it was her destiny to help people, and for a long time, she felt that was best served by being a huntress. But now that Remnant was gone, literally dust and rock floating somewhere in the middle of space, that was no longer an option. But being with the Justice League, becoming a superhero, that offered her a new avenue to fulfilling her destiny, which is why she leaped in with gusto. That he understood and agreed with.

“ _Well, what about me?_ ” he had asked her afterward.

“ _Well, I believe that your destiny is to be the great hero that you always strive to be_ ,” Pyrrha had declared with such confidence and conviction that it surprised him. Jaune chuckled, reminding himself just how lucky he was to be partnered with one of the greatest people on Remnant. He doubted that anyone else would have done what she had done back then, outside of Ruby of course. The others simply would have turned him in to Glynda or Ozpin for his own safety.

It was only a few minutes after that conversation that the whole debacle with the Lasso of Truth ensued. Knowing what he knew now, Pyrrha’s view of him might have stemmed from multiple sources, and he still didn’t quite know what to think about that. Pyrrha was undoubtedly important to him, but he didn’t know if he was willing or able to take that step. And a persistent little part of him that he tried his best to ignore asked if he really deserved it.

Before Jaune could delve deeper into those thoughts, he reached the city limits. Before him, he saw Amazons beginning their preparations for the festival. Banners and torches lined the streets and food stands were readying themselves for a busy day. Most of the Amazons ignored him, a few glared at him with unmasked annoyance, while a few more looked at him in curiosity and even waved. He waved back at those while he himself continued on to the arena, stopping by one of the practice areas on its outskirts. A few Amazons were already there, testing out their swords, shields, spears, and bows, and few acknowledged his presence as he strode up to a red-haired Amazon working on her bow.

“Excuse me, Artemis?” he asked, causing the Amazon to turn and look down at him. She recognized him immediately, having seen his training there the previous day, quite a few times against herself and her sisters.

“Well, look who came back?” the Amazon announced with a smirk. “Have to admit, surprised that you returned after the thrashing you took yesterday.”

“Hah hah,” Jaune dryly laughed. “Do you mind if I use one of the available lots before the others arrive? I’d like to get some practice in.”

“Sure, you can use the one in the far back,” Artemis stated while pointing back to the spot in question. Looking towards it, he saw a wooden practice dummy decked in crude bronze armor, a rough shield in one hand and sword in the other. The helmet it was wearing was comical, looking all misshapen and a stereotypical fanged mouth and angry eyes painted on its face, and he couldn’t help but laugh. Rather than look irritated at his reaction, Artemis merely chuckled in turn.

“Yeah, it does look weird. Now hurry up! The combatants will be here within the hour.”

“Alright, alright,” Jaune said as he walked towards the assigned lot. “By the way, Artemis? Getting beaten up by women is _not_ a new experience for me. Getting beaten up by you was nothing special.”

“Oh, is that so?” Artemis asked with an amused yet dangerous look in her eyes. “Perhaps I should join you today and help with your training?”

“There’s no need for that!” Jaune quickly backtracked, causing Artemis to chuckle darkly.

“Oh, but I think there is. You know what, I think I will join you today. Everyone needs a trainer.”

“You are absolutely right, Artemis,” Donna declared as she walked to the lot, turning everyone’s heads. “Which is why I will be working with him today, while you work with your fellow Amazons.”

Artemis and Jaune both looked at the princess, Artemis’ one of annoyance and Jaune’s one of thankfulness before Artemis scoffed and walked away.

“Whatever, not worth my time anyway,” she muttered as she walked to her lot. Smiling to herself, Donna walked over to Jaune, grabbing a sword and shield off a rack as she passed it.

“Thanks for that,” Jaune thanked the Amazon princess as she entered the ring with him. He wasn’t lying that getting beaten up by the Amazons the day before wasn’t something unique to him, but at the same time, he didn’t learn anything from the experiences. At least when Pyrrha sparred with him she took the time to help him out every step of the way, instead of just putting him on the ground.

“No problem. Artemis tends to be a little…aggressive in her fights.” Donna readied herself and Jaune did the same. After a moment, the two swung at each other, Donna expertly blocking his sword with her shield and swinging hers into his.

“Yeah, I noticed that pretty up close yesterday,” Jaune agreed as he traded blows with the princess. He swung his sword in quick, heavy blows, each one getting deflected by Donna effortlessly. On his final swing, Donna ducked underneath while sweeping out his leg, tripping him up and sending him sprawled to the dirt with a jolt of déjà vu. “Oww…”

“Always keep track of your footing,” Donna suggested while she helped the knight to his feet. She then tapped her sword against her shield twice and readied herself. “Again.”

Jaune nodded at her then went on the offensive. Swinging his sword and raising his shield to block her blows, Jaune kept moving around in an attempt to put her on the back foot. He pressed forwards towards her, keeping her on the defensive and closer and closer to the edge of the lot. He then swung his sword down hard onto hers, forcing Donna to bring her sword up broadside to block it. Then, she suddenly punched into his gut with her shield, sending him staggering back a few feet and giving her room to breathe.

“Your shield is as much of a weapon as your sword, Jaune. Never assume that just because someone is on the defensive that it means they can’t turn things around.”

“Yeah, I know that,” Jaune said as Donna rushed towards him. The two warriors continued to swing at each other, now throwing the occasional kick or punch into the mix as they continued to spar. Every so often, Jaune would get a few good hits on the Amazon, but most of the time she was the one who managed to get past his defenses and knock him to the ground, whereupon she would immediately help him up to his feet, point out the flaws he had, and together work to get past them. This went on for nearly an hour of non-stop sparring, and by the end, both he and Donna were sweaty and panting heavily.

“Okay, I think we can call it a day,” Donna declared between pants. Jaune nodded in agreement, and together the two walked to a nearby stone bench. A pair of Amazons handed the two of them wet towels, which they immediately used to cool themselves off in the hot Themysciran sun.

“Ughh, I’m glad I have Aura…” Jaune groaned as his Aura healed a fresh bruise on his chest from where Donna had kicked him.

“Sorry about that. Kinda got carried away a little bit at the end there.” She chuckled awkwardly before handing him a cup of water. Jaune greedily took it and began to drink the contents down, noting how refreshing it was. His body aches seemed to disappear and he looked at it curiously. Noticing this, Donna laughed and took the cup from him.

“All water in Themyscira comes from a single underground spring,” she began to explain. “It’s blessed by water nymphs and is the closest one can get to ambrosia outside of Olympus itself.”

“Ah.” Jaune nodded his head and wiped off more sweat from his brow. The two sat together in silence as more and more Amazons, fully decked in armor, appeared at the training lot. “Lots of people taking part in this.”

“Yes, it’s something that we have been looking forward to for some time. I actually came back from Jump City to take part in it.”

“Oh, you’re going to be fighting in the tournament?” Jaune asked, only for Donna to shake her head.

“No, unfortunately. Neither is Diana for that matter.” Donna sighed wistfully at that, causing Jaune to furrow his brow before leaning back.

“So,” he began, “what’s it like? Being the younger sister to the Wonder Woman?”

Donna hummed to herself before smiling. “Diana is…everything an Amazon should be. She’s kind, loving, courteous, and strong in so many ways. I grew up hearing about her, who she was, and all that she accomplished.” Donna sighed. “I met her for the first time a decade ago, when Diana rallied the Amazons to protect the world against Darkseid. She was…everything my people made her out to be, and more.”

“I can imagine how hard it is to live up to that,” Jaune noted while looking at her carefully. Donna nodded her head and looked back.

“Like you wouldn’t believe.” Donna laughed. “It’s not far from the truth to say that I idolize her. After the White Martians invaded five years ago, I set off from Themsycira to follow in Diana’s footsteps, eventually finding myself in Jump City with the Titans.”

“The Titans?” Jaune asked. “Who are they?”

“They used to be called the Teen Titans, but after Nightwing, Cyborg, and Starfire turned twenty they changed the name.” Donna shrugged then continued on. “We’re a team of younger superheroes centered in Titans Tower at Jump City. We formed shortly after the White Martian invasion. Actually have one of them in our ranks, in fact.”

“Wait, you mean the traitor?” Jaune asked, remembering the talk with J’onn about the origins of the Justice League.

“Yes. M’gann has been a tremendous help these past few years, and I consider her to be a great friend and ally. Though it’s probably best if you don’t call her that if you meet her.” Donna nodded to herself before looking at Jaune, who winced apologetically from the familiar taste of his foot in his mouth. “What about you?”

“Me?” Donna nodded, and so Jaune cleared his throat and continued. “Well, I have to say that I can understand exactly what it’s like being surrounded by people you look up to. It’s no secret that my friends are… much more capable than me. At one point I was more self-conscious about it, but that was beaten out of my head a couple weeks into my first semester.”

“I can imagine how.” Donna smiled, making Jaune playfully glare at her.

“Hah hah, yes. I got my butt kicked. Given how I got into Beacon in the first place, it doesn’t surprise me.”

“What do you mean?” Donna raised her eyebrow and Jaune waved his hand.

“Well, like you with Diana, I grew up hearing about my family’s exploits. My father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, they were all heroes. My sword actually belonged to my great-grandfather, saw use in the Great War, and it was passed down the Arc family ever since. I grew up hearing about their heroism, and I wanted to ‘continue the legacy’ and join those ranks.”

“I take it they didn’t take the request to train you all that well?” Donna asked, only for Jaune to shake his head.

“No, they didn’t. I think it was because they didn’t want me or my sisters to live the life my father had, and so they tried to get us to go into other pursuits. But I was stubborn, and prideful, and wouldn’t take no for an answer despite no one training me.”

“So you trained yourself and then lied your way to Beacon, right?” she asked, prompting a confused look from Jaune. Waving her hand around, Donna began to explain herself. “Pyrrha and I talked a bit yesterday. She let me know after I asked about it.”

“Ah, I guess it is kind of a pointless secret now. Well, long story short, a guy named Cardin found out about my transcripts, threatened to turn me in if I didn’t do whatever he wanted before I finally stood up to him after several weeks of hell, and saved his life from an Ursa. Afterwards, I finally swallowed my pride and let Pyrrha train me.” Jaune smiled at this, prompting Donna to do the same.

“I see that you admire her a lot.”

“Yeah, I do. Doesn’t make things any less awkward between us right now…” Jaune noted and Donna patted his shoulder.

“Trust me, you two will figure things out. After eighty years, I’ve seen more than my fair share of awkward relationships between friends.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re…” Jaune paused mid-sentence and slowly turned his head to stare at Donna. “Um, what did you say?”

“I’ve seen more than my fair share of awkward relationships?” Donna repeated, utterly confused.

“No, before that.”

“Um…after eighty years?” Donna repeated, now beginning to realize where Jaune’s surprise and confusion came from. She noticed how his eyes quickly scanned her, and she couldn’t help but feel amusement.

“…you’re eighty?”

“Yes, actually.” Donna smiled, growing more and more amused at the confused look on Jaune’s face.

“…I thought you were only eighteen…”

“Well, I am the youngest Amazon on the island, so that is understandable.”

Jaune continued to stare at her before shrugging. “And I thought having seven sisters was tough…”

“You have seven sisters?” It was now Donna’s turn to be confused, bringing satisfaction to Jaune’s face at the turned tables. He nodded at this, prompting a look of worry to cross Donna’s face. “What did your father do to your mother?”

“You’re assuming that my dad is the one who instigated all of that. You’d be wrong.”

* * *

“Ooh, what’s that!? Ooh, what’s this?” Nora excitedly bounced around from stand to stand, openly gawking at the wide assortment of trinkets on display, much to the amusement of both Ren and the Amazonian shopkeepers. They had been like this for the past hour or so, ever since they woke up and entered the city. By the time they arrived, Themyscira was awash with activity as the festival was set to begin in just a few short hours. Amazon warriors, hoping to prove their mettle in the arena, continued to pour in from across the city and beyond while others merely mingled. It was quite an exciting sight.

Ren wasn’t fooled. Although it was carefully hidden, he could see the edge everyone was standing on. The number of guards was noticeably increased, and everyone had weapons nearby, often inconspicuously inserted into their stand’s décor. Everyone was readying themselves to act at a moment’s notice, just in case something went terribly wrong. He didn’t blame them. After all, he had both halves of Stormflower locked and loaded, ready to be deployed at a moment’s notice. Nora herself had Magnhild strapped to her back even now.

Still, seeing her excited again allowed him to put his fears aside for the moment. Now was a time for celebration and fun, not worry over something he couldn’t control.

“Nora, wait up,” Ren said as he hurried over to his partner. With a bright smile on her face, Nora waited for him next to a jewelry stand. The shop owner was nowhere to be seen, and Nora was busy looking at a gold chain necklace with a pink amethyst embedded in its center.

“Ren, what do you think?” Nora asked as she put the necklace on and showed it off. Ren studied it with an appraising gaze before nodding.

“It looks good on you, Nora,” Ren declared, causing Nora’s smile to brighten even more.

“I’ll say!” a woman’s voice suddenly announced. Ren and Nora jumped slightly and turned around, only to come face to face with a woman behind the jewelry stand. Both Ren and Nora found her to be strikingly beautiful. Her black hair was long and silky, appearing to glow in the sunlight, accented by pale white skin with bright, blue eyes and perfect lips. The woman’s body was nearly hourglass, her figure concealed by white robes that still revealed quite a bit of her features.

By all definitions, this woman appeared to be the living definition of beauty.

“Come now, there’s no need to stare,” the woman said through a warm smile, shaking Ren and Nora out of their stupor. “I don’t bite.”

“Sorry about that, ma’am,” Ren apologized, knowing that the Amazons wouldn’t appreciate what he and Nora did. Rather than appear irritated, however, the woman merely seemed to be amused.

“Don’t be.” The woman leaned forward across the stand with a sultry smile, causing a blush to erupt on Ren and Nora’s faces and making them avert their gazes. Seeing this, the woman laughed and straightened herself. “Alright, I’ve had my fun. So, what brings you two to my stand?”

“Oh, well,” Nora paused to regain her thoughts before handing the necklace back to the woman. “I was just checking things out and this caught my eye.”

“Ah, I see. Come here, both of you.” The woman beckoned them over, which Ren and Nora cautiously did. There was something off about the woman, and so they remained on guard.

“Oh, that’s adorable!” she exclaimed with a clap of her hands. “The way you two are protecting each other, making sure that you both stay safe! I can see that you two have been doing it for quite some time now!”

If Ren and Nora’s alarm wasn’t stricken before, it was blaring now. This only seemed to amuse the woman more as she studied the two intensely.

“Yes, I can see it. You two met as children after a tragedy took everything else from you. For years, you only had each other, but you never took that step until another tragedy put everything into perspective. Not what I would have preferred, to be honest. I’ve always loved heartfelt confessions in the pale moonlight, surrounded by candles and succulent food, but you can’t contain love.”

“What do you know about love?” Nora couldn’t stop herself from asking. Before she could apologize, a glamorous look crossed the woman’s face as she smiled haughtily.

“My dear, I _am_ love. That most glorious of emotions is what I _live_ for. I see it everywhere, try to spread it far and wide, and I see it within you both.” The woman suddenly took hold of Ren and Nora’s hands, and they could feel her warmth spread into them. “Never let that go. Never let each other go.”

Ren and Nora looked at each other then back at the strange woman, then nodded.

“We don’t plan to,” Ren declared with absolute conviction, and the woman smiled and clapped.

“Spectacular! Ooh, I just love seeing two lovebirds together, ready to take on the world no matter what gets thrown at them!” She then closed her eyes and smiled warmly before waving them off. “Now go! Join your friends. The main event is about to begin, and don’t let me keep you!”

“O…kay…?” Nora replied, thoroughly confused. Taking Ren’s arm with hers, they turned and walked away from the lovely women, who herself seemed content to wave them off. The two paused as a group of Amazons blocked their view of the stand and its owner, and when it finally passed they gasped at the sight.

Instead of seeing the woman and her stand, in its place was nothing but thin air, a red rose lying on the ground where it all once stood.

* * *

By the time Ren and Nora came back to the arena, the festival was already in full swing. A large crowd of Amazons had gathered, beckoning everyone in sight to fill the amphitheater. They passed the arena guards before entering the stands. They looked around to try and find where their friends were sitting, only to see a familiar mop of red hair waving at them excitedly. Smiling in turn, Ren and Nora quickly made their way through the growing crowd of Amazons to join Ruby, the others sans Yang and Pyrrha already with them. Thanks to them being the guests of the royal family, they were given their own private balcony to overlook everything, while also granting them privacy from the assorted crowds.

“Hey guys,” Jaune said as he scooted to the side and gave them a seat. “Took you two long enough. Was starting to think you got lost.”

“Jaune, just because you did yesterday doesn’t mean we did,” Nora lightly chastised, causing Jaune to blush with embarrassment and the others to chuckle.

“That’s enough, Nora,” Ren told her, causing Jaune to look at him with a thankful smile. That smile disappeared when Ren started to grin. “Artemis already gave him enough trouble yesterday.”

Jaune sighed at Ren’s joke while everyone laughed. “Honestly, no respect…”

Ruby patted Jaune’s shoulder before looking sternly at everyone. After a few more chuckles, everyone died down and sat down in silent comfort. Jaune then sat upright, his face showing that he wasn’t offended, more embarrassed at getting lost in the city the previous day. He and Pyrrha had been walking back to the guest house after getting some food when he got turned around for a moment. When he turned back, he spotted a red-haired woman with a ponytail walking through the crowd, and he had assumed it was Pyrrha.

The woman he was following turned out to be Artemis on her way to the arena, and after his confusion was discovered, Jaune was subjected to the most brutal training in his life before Pyrrha finally rescued him.

“In all seriousness, what took you guys so long? We thought you’d be back like ten minutes ago,” Ruby asked Ren, who shook his head.

“Nora and I got caught up in the market,” he revealed.

“Yeah, there was a whole bunch of stuff there,” Nora added with her usual bubbly demeanor. “There was also this really, and I mean _really¸_ hot lady who started talking to us about love. Said she gave us her ‘blessing’, whatever that means, then she and her stand disappeared, leaving behind a rose for some reason. She was weird.”

Ren and Nora couldn’t help but feel that the entire encounter was abnormal. That woman did not appear to be an Amazon, but what she actually was they did not pretend to know. They said nothing more, leaving their questions for a later, more private time with Donna or Diana, then turned their attention to the field as a large group of armored Amazons entered the arena. At their head was Queen Hippolyta, flanked by Diana and Donna along with a cadre of guards. Among them they saw Yang and Pyrrha, wearing more typical Amazonian garb that was stylized to fit their own personal specifications. The crowd grew quiet as Hippolyta walked to a central podium, where an Amazon stood with a bow in hand next to a large pyre. The Amazon handed her Queen her bow as Hippolyta approached. The Queen nodded, and another Amazon handed her a single arrow. Taking and nocking it on her bowstring, Hippolyta ignited the arrowhead by inserting it into the pyre before aiming it upwards. Following her gaze, the crowd saw a large bowl on the top of the arena, filled with what they could only assume was oil.

“Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt and Chastity,” Hippolyta began to pray, her words causing the gathered Amazons to bow their heads. Out of respect, RWBY and JNPR did the same.  “Athena, Goddess of Wisdom and Warfare. Hera, Goddess of Women. Hestia, Goddess of the Hearth. Aphrodite, Goddess of Love and Beauty. Bless us on this most holy of days so that we may celebrate the protection you’ve granted us, and that we may, in turn, extend your grace to the world.”

After granting a moment of pause, Hippolyta opened her eyes and let loose the flaming arrow. The arrow sang through the air, a trail of smoke following its arc into the bowl. It hit its mark, the fire igniting the oil into a high reaching fire. At once, the crowd cheered as the fire raged, and the Queen smiled in victory and raised her sword into the air. The assembled Amazons, along with Yang and Pyrrha, quickly followed suit.

“Let the tournament commence!” Hippolyta declared to a joyous crowd. Ruby couldn’t help but cheer alongside her Amazon hosts, the fears of last night slowly ebbing away.

For a brief moment, just beside the burning bowl on top of the arena, Ruby thought she saw five robed women looking over everyone, but just as soon as they appeared, they were gone.

* * *

With the opening ceremony conducted, the tournament started in earnest. Ruby had thought it would be similar to the Vytal Festival, with the actual tournament fighting starting immediately afterwards. She was quickly proven wrong when several animals were led into the arena, which itself was changed to resemble a track. Obviously, they were going to open with a race, but they weren’t using horses. Instead, they were racing on the largest kangaroos she had ever laid eyes on. Apparently, they were called kangas and were native to Themyscira.

“Go, Yang!” Ruby cheered as her sister rode further on the track, her kanga hopping along as fast as it could. The sight of over a dozen kangas bouncing down the track, her sister leading all of them, was both thrilling and humorous at the same time. It was like the bag races she used to do when she was young, only now on animals and an actual sport.

If Yang heard her sister’s encouragement, she didn’t show it as she continued focusing on the race. She had to admit it was difficult to get used to riding on a hopping animal. The first few races were an absolute disaster. But she was able to get the hang of it eventually, something that even Pyrrha hadn’t been able to fully get at this time. Any chance she could get to prove one over the champion would be seized at a moment’s notice, and so Yang continued to pull ahead with a smile on her face.

Beside her, a number of Amazons, each with more experience than her, were closing in on her lead and riding side by side with her. Their faces were scrunched in concentration, each determined to prove victorious in this contest. For a moment, Yang briefly fell behind, only for her to lean forward and grip her reins tighter.

“Come on, girl! Just a little more!” she urged her kanga, and with a snort, the beast bounded ever faster. They were in the home stretch now as the trio rounded the final bend. This was to be the last race before the actual tournament fighting would begin, and Yang was determined to win at least once. She continued to urge her mount to bound faster and faster, and as they reached the final few feet, the nose of Yang’s mount passed in front of the others just as they passed the finish line.

“YES!” Yang cheered as she was declared the winner while the Amazons grunted in disappointment. Around her, the audience cheered at the performance, and from atop her kanga mount, Yang couldn’t help but give a slight bow.

“Seriously, Yang?” Weiss scoffed as the other racers passed the line, Pyrrha among them. She couldn’t help but notice that, rather than appear disappointed, Pyrrha instead seemed to be happy despite her middling placement. It was then that Weiss remembered that Pyrrha hated being the center of attention, so her losing in this race must have been a nice change of pace. Weiss then saw handlers appear from the entrances to the arena floor, grabbing hold of the kangas and leading them out to the holding pens. Yang petted hers as it was led away, and her mouth appeared to move as she said something. Exactly what, Weiss couldn’t hear over the crowd, especially as the warriors moved out of the arena to allow it to change once more.

Through a complex inner working system, the tiles that made up the actual arena shifted and moved, turning from a racetrack to a series of circular rings, filled with sand and lined with marble white stone. At the center of the arena was a large square fighting pit, also filled with sand. With a nod, Weiss and the others figured the actual tournament fighting would be on those rings, with multiple matches happening at once to start off with. Workers then moved towards the individual rings, carrying racks of weapons, armor, and shields on their shoulders before putting them next to the individual rings.

“Hello, everyone!” she heard Donna proclaim as she walked towards them, proudly stepping through the red cloth marking their private balcony from the rest of the arena.

“Donna!” Ruby exclaimed as she moved over and offered a seat to the princess. With a warm smile, Donna accepted the invitation and sat down next to her and Jaune, looking down on the arena as warriors were divided up and assigned to separate rings. Yang and Pyrrha appeared to be split apart, each moving to separate rings, and Jaune smiled to himself.

“Pyrrha’s going to win,” he declared with utmost confidence in his partner.

“Yeah!” Nora shouted in agreement while Ren let out a small smile.

“Says you!” Ruby protested. “Yang’s going to win, you’ll see!” Behind her, Weiss shrugged and smirked, while Blake waved around a small flag with their team name embroidered on it.

“Blake, where’d you get that?” Donna asked, keenly aware that Blake did not pack that with her when they left the Watchtower.

“I made it last night.”

“Ah. Neat.” Donna then turned her attention back towards the arena. A few matches were already underway, the Amazons showcasing their respective skills against one another in the grand tourney while those not currently participating merely studied their potential opponents. Yang and Pyrrha were among them, while at the same time they were conversing with those on the bench with them.

“So, is it true that you came from another world?” an Amazon asked Yang as she watched two other Amazons brawl. Yang nodded.

“Yep,” she replied with a pop. The Amazons around her nodded, then one leaned forward towards the match before them.

“What was it like?” she asked, and Yang thought for a moment. Part of her wanted to simply retreat into herself and refuse to answer, but at the same time she knew that wouldn’t solve anything. With a sigh, she decided to push forward.

“Remnant was…a lot like Earth really. Same type of environments, same animals for some reason, not to mention the people. Same problems, too. Violence, prejudice, evil monsters, you name it, we had it.” Yang paused and sighed. “I miss it.”

“…yes,” the Amazon who had asked the question softly said, feeling regret for bringing it up. “I’m sorry for…”

“Don’t be. You weren’t the one who blew it up.” Yang’s eyes turned red as she thought about the man who was responsible, only to shake her head. Her eyes turned back to their normal lilac and she smiled. “Well, that’s enough brooding for today.”

Seeing that as a cue to drop the conversation, the Amazons turned their attention back to the fight itself. Out of the corner of her eye, Yang saw Pyrrha currently sparring against another Amazon. As she expected, Pyrrha was performing phenomenally, effortlessly parrying and dodging the Amazon’s attacks and kicks and retaliating with her own. Yang could see a faint black field appear on the bronze weapons and armor for brief moments, indicating that the huntress was using her Semblance as she always did. For a while, the two women were worried that the Amazons wouldn’t appreciate them using their Semblances, as none of the Amazons had ones of their own, only for Donna and Diana to specify that not using them would be taken as an insult. Basically, by not using their Semblances, they would be handicapping themselves before the Amazons, something the prideful warriors would not appreciate. With this in mind, Yang stood up proudly as her name was announced along with another Amazon.

“May the best woman win,” Yang decreed as she cracked her neck and grabbed a pair of armored gloves. They were no Ember Celica, but they would have to do.

“I intend to,” the Amazon arrogantly replied as she grabbed a spear, causing Yang to scoff. She would enjoy bringing her down a peg. Together, the two of them stepped out onto the sand, their sandals making soft scrunching sounds as they crossed it to their starting positions. Another Amazon, playing the role of referee, held a red flag aloft. A pause ensued as both women readied themselves, hunched over and preparing to make their move. The referee yelled as she brought the flag down, and at once the two exploded with activity.

Yang yelled as she leaped forward, her arm cocked backward and ready to throw a haymaker while the spearwoman charged at Yang, her weapon hoisted forward. As the spear tip neared, Yang planted her foot on the soft sand and, with her free hand, moved the weapon to her side, making it harmlessly stab into the ground while she, in turn, threw a punch. The Amazon blocked it with her shield while kicking Yang away, forcing her back. With a scowl, the Amazon ripped the spear out of the ground and charged at Yang once more, thrusting her spear forward and aiming for her armored gut. Yang quickly grabbed the shaft before contact could be made, and with a confident smirk, she pulled the weapon and the Amazon wielding it closer to her.

Instead of being surprised as Yang expected, the Amazon used the added momentum to jump upwards and kick her leg out, striking Yang in the face. As the huntress clutched where the blow landed, the Amazon swung her spear in the wide arc, striking Yang in the arm and making her cry out in pain.

“Gaagh!” she exclaimed as she ducked underneath another stab. Her eyes turned red as she lunged towards the Amazon, tackling her to the ground and punching her a few times in the face. As she tried to punch again, the Amazon wrapped her legs around Yang’s waist and flipped their positions. Quickly, Yang brought her arms up to cover her face as the Amazon began furiously pummeling Yang’s body with fist and shield, determined to prove she was superior.

“No you don’t,” Yang declared as she suddenly planted her hands on the warm sand, allowing a few blows to land on her while she began pushing. Her legs still wrapped around Yang’s waist, the Amazon was surprised as Yang began using that to her advantage to lift her off the ground and tried to slam her headfirst into the sand. Knowing what she was trying to do, the Amazon released her hold, only for Yang to smile and purposefully throw the Amazon off of her and across the sand pit. Puffs of dust came up and both shield and spear were flung away as the Amazon skidded the sand. The warrior managed to stop herself with a three-point pose while Yang flipped herself back onto her feet. For a brief moment, the Amazon eyed her discarded shield and spear but decided against it as she marched towards Yang with her fists pumping.

Smirking to herself, Yang repeated the action in kind as the two women made their way over to each other before beginning to box. The two women punched each other as hard as they could, Yang’s Aura taking the force while the Amazon merely endured hers. Yang was reminded that an Amazon was as durable as she was, even without Aura, and as such knew that she couldn’t simply wait it out. She had to end this quickly, the blows were beginning to hurt more and more as her Aura was drained. The Amazon then delivered a flying knee to Yang’s gut, knocking the wind out of her and followed up by throwing Yang over her shoulder and across the ring.

“Had enough?” the Amazon asked as Yang picked herself up. The huntress’ eyes were closed, and for a moment the Amazon thought she had this in the bag, only for Yang’s hair to burst into flame. Yang opened her now burning red eyes and smiled brightly, her teeth clearly seen as she stood up and banged her fists together. As she did, a small explosion erupted around her, sending off clouds of sand that buffeted her Amazon opponent.

“Have you?” Yang shot back as she leaped towards the Amazon with such speed that the woman barely had time to react. She tried to block Yang’s outstretched fist, only for it to suddenly swerve and swing into her gut, knocking her to her knees and sending her skidding back. Yang followed up with a haymaker to the Amazon’s face just as she got to her feet, sending her spinning around. The Amazon tried to retaliate, only for Yang to spin past her jab and elbow her in the face, stunning her long enough for Yang to deliver a final uppercut. The blow sent the Amazon flying a few feet upwards and she landed in a heap. As everyone watched her with bated breath, they saw how the Amazon moved to try and push herself up, only to give up and collapse in defeat.

“Victor!” the referee declared while pointing her flag at a victorious Yang. The Amazon crowd cheered as Yang’s fire burned away, her eyes turning back to their normal lilac.

“Whew, that was intense,” she commented as she moved to help her opponent to her feet. The Amazon glared at her and slapped the offered hand away before hobbling to her feet and retreating to the barracks outside of the arena itself. “Well, that’s rude.”

“Don’t mind her. Airla has always been a sore loser,” another Amazon decreed as she tossed Yang a towel. Taking it happily, Yang began wiping the sweat off of herself while sitting down. This day was going to be long, and it would be wise for her to save her strength.

Pretty soon, once enough rounds have been done, everyone would move from the circular rings to the large square in the center. She was confident she and Pyrrha would make it, but she wasn’t so arrogant to assume that she had this in the bag. Seeing Artemis beat down her opponent in just a few seconds only made that feeling more apparent.

* * *

After several more rounds of intense combat, with a healthy break in between for refreshment and rest, the remain eight fighters had moved to the large square ring. True to Yang’s prediction, both she and Pyrrha had made it to the final rounds, and despite herself, Pyrrha couldn’t help but feel excited. It had been a long time since she had actually participated in a true tournament. It was one of the reasons why she had looked forward to the Vytal Festival back on Remnant, but there she had the enormous pressure of living up to her reputation as the Invincible Girl. Here, on Earth and Themsycira, no one even knew who she was. She was free to fight, to win or lose without having to worry what people thought of her.

The possibilities afforded to her now were exciting. She only wished she got them through more pleasant means.

“Artemis and Pyrrha!” the referee shouted over the roars of the crowd. Pyrrha straightened herself when Yang patted her on the shoulder.

“Show ‘em who’s boss, P-Money,” Yang ordered with a smile. Pyrrha smiled back before walking towards the ring, her face turning back to a serious expression as Artemis entered on the opposite side of her. Without saying a word, the two warriors grabbed their weapons. For Pyrrha, a small, round shield and short sword. For Artemis, a bow and a single sword were more than enough.

“Are you ready, girl?” Artemis asked, an arrogant smile on her face. Pyrrha didn’t deign her with an answer, merely content to place her shield in front of her, her sword resting on top of it and pointed at the Amazon. Artemis chuckled as she grabbed an arrow from her quiver and nocked it.

Pyrrha wasn’t blind to how skilled Artemis was. Jaune was very clear on that front, and Pyrrha would respect her strength. If she wanted to win, she couldn’t afford to let arrogance blind her.

“Begin!” the referee declared. Artemis reacted immediately by shooting the arrow at Pyrrha, who raised her shield to block the missile. The arrow bounced off with a loud clang, and Pyrrha could feel the impact jolt down her arm, a sizable dent appearing in the bronze frame. Pyrrha’s brow furrowed as she realized how much power Artemis was wielding, and she noted that she would have to be careful.

Artemis grabbed another arrow and shot it towards Pyrrha, who ran towards it while knocking it to the side. As she neared, Artemis smiled and leaped towards the huntress, pulling out and shooting two arrows at once. Both hit Pyrrha’s shield as she blocked the blows, giving Artemis a chance to use it as a springboard and jump off of her. As she did, she fired another arrow, this one hitting Pyrrha square in the back.

“Grrgh!” Pyrrha grunted as she swung around and blocked yet another arrow. This time, she threw her shield with the momentum, hitting Artemis in the arm and making her drop her weapon. The Amazon clutched her wrist in pain as Pyrrha ran at her with her sword in hand. Smirking, Artemis drew her own sword and swung it at Pyrrha’s blade. The weapons impacted against each other, and the two women braced and pushed against one another, trying to make the other give.

“You’re strong, I’ll give you that,” Artemis noted with a smirk. She then kicked Pyrrha’s knee, forcing her down and breaking the stalemate. She used the opportunity to swing the sword down, only for Pyrrha to roll away and cause the swing to strike against soft sand. With an amused smirk, Artemis charged at Pyrrha once more, with both fighters swinging their swords at one another and aiming at exposed areas of their defense.

‘ _She is good,_ ’ Pyrrha thought to herself as she continued to dodge and attack. At the same time, Pyrrha was studying Artemis’ fighting style, noting the peculiarities of how she attacked and defended. She was starting to get a pretty good picture as to how Artemis fought. She was aggressive, constantly attacking and leaving her opponent little time to react or exploit the inevitable openings her assault created. At the same time, her eyes were constantly scanning Pyrrha’s actions, looking for when she would retaliate and react accordingly. Those openings that Artemis created were purposeful. She wanted Pyrrha to try and exploit them, thereby allowing the Amazon to punish the attempt.

Pyrrha wasn’t about to let that happen. If she couldn’t exploit her opponent’s openings, she would have to make her own. With this in mind, and as Artemis swung her sword from the right, Pyrrha subtly used her Semblance. A faint black glow surrounded the bronze sword and it moved ever so slightly. It was enough to throw the attack off balance, allowing Pyrrha to parry it, much to Artemis’ surprise. This gave Pyrrha an opening, and she swung the blunt blade into Artemis’ side.

“Aagh!” Artemis grunted as the attack hit, which was followed by a spin kick which sent her skidding back. Pyrrha used the opportunity to run and grab her fallen shield then back at Artemis, who had recovered enough to meet her attack head-on. The two warriors swapped blow after blow, Pyrrha blocking Artemis with her shield or parrying with her sword while Artemis, in turn, would do the same. At the same time, Artemis’ mind was reeling, trying to figure out how her swing missed. It should not have happened.

She didn’t have long before she kicked at Pyrrha’s gut, only for her armored boot to again go slightly off course, allowing Pyrrha to parry it with a rising knee, followed by a quick kick of her own. Artemis skidded back in clear surprise, angry that it had happened again. In ire, she charged at Pyrrha once more, swinging her sword in a wild slash, and that’s when she saw it. A faint, almost incomprehensible black glow surrounded her weapon for a brief second. As it did, her weapon changed course ever so slightly, allowing Pyrrha to parry it once more and stab her gut with the blunted blade. Artemis retreated, her mind reeling from what had just happened. Was this Pyrrha’s Semblance, as they described their abilities? Was she able to manipulate her weapon?

At once, things suddenly began to fall into place. Why hardly any of her Amazon sisters’ attacks against Pyrrha landed, how she was able to effortlessly block, parry, or dodge oncoming attacks. She was using her Semblance to manipulate their weapons. Thinking back to her kick, Artemis realized that the same thing must have happened then. Pyrrha had manipulated her boot to make it go off course. As she thought about it more, she realized that the only real similarity between the two was in their composition.

They were both made of bronze. Made of metal. Her bow and arrow were not, as they were made of wood. That was why Pyrrha didn’t use her Semblance on them. She could only manipulate metals.

With a wild smile, Artemis suddenly threw her sword out of the ring entirely, much to Pyrrha’s surprise. It was followed by Artemis ripping off her armor, leaving her only clad in simple red cloth. For a moment, Pyrrha wondered just why Artemis would do that, only to realize it as soon as Artemis picked up her previously discarded wooden bow.

“I have to admit,” Artemis shouted as he picked up a fallen wooden arrow, “the metal manipulation thing? Wasn’t expecting that. But did you honestly think I wouldn’t catch on?”

Pyrrha couldn’t help but smirk as she readied herself once again. “You did catch on sooner than I expected.”

“I bet I did,” Artemis smiled as she shot the arrow at Pyrrha, who chopped it in half with her sword. She charged at the Amazon, slicing any arrow shot towards her with ease. Now that her Semblance was out in the open, she had to remove any way for Artemis to effectively attack her. Destroying her ammunition was a good start.

When Pyrrha got into range, she swung her sword from the right, forcing Artemis to block it with her bow. Pyrrha then punched with her shield’s edge, only for Artemis to kick it upwards. The Amazon then shoulder checked her, twisting her bow to rip the sword out of Pyrrha’s hands. With a victorious smirk, Artemis chucked the sword out of the ring, thereby removing it from the field. Pyrrha could easily grab it with her Semblance, and had this been an actual fight she would have done so. But, this was a tournament, and trying to grab her weapon from outside the ring would have been against the rules.

She didn’t mind. In all honesty, it was increasing the challenge, and therefore the fun.

With a smile, Pyrrha retaliated with a punch to Artemis’ face, socking her across the jaw. She then followed with a shield punch to the chest, sending the Amazon skidding back across the sand. As she slid back, Artemis fired arrow after arrow at Pyrrha, who charged at Artemis with her shield in front. Each arrow bounced off the shield until Pyrrha slammed into Artemis with it. As Artemis fell to the ground, she kicked up her legs, grabbing Pyrrha by the waist, and used her as leverage to flip herself back upright while a surprised Pyrrha was now lying on the ground. Immediately, Artemis continued by grabbing hold of Pyrrha’s arm, using her leg to pin the other as she took Pyrrha’s shield and ripped it out of her hand, followed by throwing it next to her sword.

She was now effectively defenseless. She had no weapon, no shield, only the armor she was still wearing. This had never happened before in one of Pyrrha’s fights, and it had been ages since she had been forced to fight hand to hand against someone. As skilled as she was, Pyrrha was not blind to her weaknesses. Yang and Ren, the primary hand to hand fighters among them, were actually better than her in this regard. Yang’s punches had more power behind them than Pyrrha could match, and Ren’s skill was far beyond hers. It entered her mind that she could indeed lose to Artemis.

The thought filled her with adrenaline, and she couldn’t help but laugh. As she did, Artemis looked confused, which gave the huntress an opening to deliver a headbutt. Artemis reeled back, allowing Pyrrha to sweep her legs out from under her and knock the Amazon to the ground. At once, Pyrrha was on her, punching as hard as she could into the Amazon’s face and chest. Artemis brought her arms to cover her face before grabbing hold of Pyrrha’ hands. Using her legs, Artemis threw Pyrrha off of her, allowing them both to rise to their feet and size each other up.

As if answering an unspoken challenge, Pyrrha ripped off her armor and threw it out of the ring. The two women were now clad only in simple clothes, and Artemis smiled in recognition and respect. Together, the two of them charged at one another, fists reared back and thrown at one other. Each one hit the other’s face at the same time, but neither let it stop them. They traded blow after blow, and as they did the roar of the crowd grew louder and louder at the spectacle before them. Pyrrha was reminded of how fun these tournaments truly could be, and she was ecstatic.

Artemis grabbed hold of Pyrrha’s shoulders, only for the younger woman to immediately break her grip with a swipe of her forearms. The two women then clasped each other’s hands tightly, pushing against the sand as hard as they could. By now, bruises could be seen across both of their bodies, and Pyrrha could feel her Aura depleting. She didn’t have much left, and once it was gone, she knew she would be finished. She had to end this now.

With that in mind, Pyrrha released her grip on Artemis and jumped upwards, angling herself to land on her back while kicking outwards into Artemis’ chest. Having knocked her opponent back, Pyrrha reangled herself onto her hands and spring-boarded back to her feet, followed by a lunge towards the Amazon. Artemis was ready for her and delivered an uppercut that knocked Pyrrha skyward. The huntress wasn’t completely blindsided though and moved with the blow into a backflip that snapped the other redhead’s own chin up with her sandaled foot. When the Amazon lowered her head back down, a smile was blazoned across her face. She moved to retaliate, dodging Pyrrha’s jab and hitting the huntress with one of her own. She punched her again, then grabbed her shoulders and brought her close to deliver a brutal headbutt. Dazed, Pyrrha retaliated by grappling into Artemis’ stomach, lifting her off her feet and repeatedly punching her in the side while Artemis elbowed her back as hard as she could. Pyrrha fought through the pain, trying to toss Artemis out of the ring, only for the Amazon to twist out of the move at the last second, pulling the off-balanced girl with her and lifting her completely overhead. She then slammed Pyrrha against the ground, the impact strong enough to create a small crater and knock the wind out of Pyrrha’s chest.

Artemis was on her immediately, pinning her to the ground and angling herself to put her into a hold. Pyrrha struggled against the Amazon’s grip, clawing and punching and kicking at everything she could. Artemis merely tightened her grip, and Pyrrha’s strength began to falter. With heavy breaths, her vision beginning to blur, she acted out with one final strike with the back of her head, hitting Artemis in the nose. A crack was heard along with a howl of pain and a wet sensation that coursed down her head, but Artemis’ hold did not break.

Finally, Pyrrha closed her eyes and tapped Artemis’ arm twice, signaling her surrender.

Artemis released her grip immediately, allowing both of them to fall to the ground in leaden heaps. Both of them were breathing heavily, and from this position Pyrrha angled her head back to look at Artemis. Her nose was misshapen, blood trickling down it, and Pyrrha realized she must have broken her nose with that last headbutt. The two women looked at each other for a moment, before Artemis started laughing at the guilt-stricken look frozen on her opponent’s face, which sagged in relief upon realizing that there were no hard feelings for the injury. The crowd roared in approval as Artemis stood up and helped Pyrrha to her feet, and together they bowed to the assembled crowd as the referee declared Artemis the winner.

“That…was quite a match…” Artemis declared with a smile as she tended to her nose, stuffing rolls of cloth into her nostrils to stem the bleeding. Pyrrha smiled apologetically at her.

“I haven’t had that much fun in a fight in years,” she stated as she turned to the Amazon. “I look forward to our rematch.”

At that statement, Artemis turned to Pyrrha and smiled while clasping their hands together.

“I look forward to that day.” Artemis then hoisted Pyrrha’s arm skyward, and together they basked in the roar of the crowd.

* * *

“THAT! WAS! AWESOME!” Nora shouted as Pyrrha was escorted from the arena, likely to get whatever treatment for her injuries that were necessary. They had seen that her Aura broke, but Pyrrha was so into the fight that it somehow escaped her notice.

“Wished she won, though,” Jaune admitted, disappointment clear in his voice. Still, judging by what he could see, Pyrrha didn’t feel that way, so he would just have to feel it for the both of them.

“Wow, she had Artemis on the ropes. I didn’t know who was going to win that one,” Donna admitted. Like the others, she had been heavily invested in the fight, wondering just who was going to win at every moment. It was perhaps the most thrilling match she had seen all day. In years, even.

“Guess that leaves Yang to avenge her,” Weiss stated while nodding to herself. She often forgot just how skilled Pyrrha actually was, given how the huntress didn’t often go all out. Seeing her do just that was a healthy reminder her skill, and that even the strongest of them could still fall.

“Yeah! Kick her butt, Yang!” Ruby shouted from the balcony edge, despite knowing that her sister couldn’t hear her. Blake nodded in agreement but chose to remain silent, happily nibbling on a kebabbed smoked fish. Her mind wandered to Pyrrha, wondering if she would join them or merely remain content to stay down at the field.

* * *

As Pyrrha exited the barracks, feeling her Aura begin to come back and heal her wounds, the passing Amazons congratulated her on a spectacular match. Being the polite person she was, Pyrrha happily thanked them and continued on her way past the arena and towards a nearby grassy hill overlooking the sea. The sun was gleaming across the waters, and a cool breeze came by with the smells of salt and the nearby forest with it. Breathing deeply, Pyrrha sighed in contentment.

It was then that she heard the sound of light footsteps. Turning around, she saw Diana walking towards her, a smoked fish held out in offering to her.

“I thought you might be hungry after that last match,” Diana stated as she gave the huntress the fish.

“Yes, thank you,” Pyrrha said as she bit down into the flesh. The two women remained content to sit in silence, staring out across the sea as the sun continued to set.

“You know,” Diana began, drawing Pyrrha’s attention, “when I was young, I used to come up here after my studies. I would watch the sun set from this very spot. I’d forgotten just how beautiful sunsets in Themsycira are.”

“Yeah, it is beautiful,” Pyrrha admitted before turning back to the sunset. “How long were you gone?”

“Depends on which time.” Diana chuckled. “When I left with Steve, my mother was forced to exile me. I remained in Man’s world for ninety years, before Darkseid finally forced my hand to travel back and face my mother to get assistance.”

“What happened after that?” Pyrrha asked.

“The Amazons were…stubborn, for lack of a better word. Deep down, they knew that should the forces of Apokolips succeed, Themyscira would be put into harm’s way. But there was no way for them to confirm that the injustices of Man’s World wouldn’t flow into their home. They were reluctant to provide assistance.”

“What changed their minds?”

Diana smiled and looked at Pyrrha. “I taught them what Steve Trevor taught me. He taught me that, although there is darkness in man, there is still good in them. That good was still worth fighting for, and that should Darkseid be allowed to extinguish it and replace it with his evil, all would be lost. I showed my mother the destruction his generals and armies wrought, the suffering that followed in his wake, and they were moved. On that day, my mother rode out with her Amazons to join the armies of man to defeat Darkseid, while myself, Batman, and Superman took him down ourselves. Afterward, I stayed with the Amazons for five years, helping to establish how they would interact with Man’s World, only for the Imperium’s invasion to spring me back into action. This is the first time I’ve been back since.”

Pyrrha nodded at Diana’s recollection and leaned back, allowing the sun’s rays to bathe over her. Sighing once more, she was content to sit in silence for a long while. Her thoughts drifted over her experiences, ranging from Remnant’s destruction to their meeting with the Justice League to their time in Themyscira. The more she thought about it, the more at peace she felt. The pain of losing her home would always be there, but she could not afford to let it define her. None of them could.

“This place,” Pyrrha began, catching Diana’s attention, “It is…so much like Remnant in so many ways it’s almost unfathomable. You’d almost think they were twins, they’re so alike. I think…that’s why we’ve acclimated so quickly. Beyond the countries, the ideologies, the people, Remnant and Earth are…one and the same. They are both filled with wonder and danger, hope and despair, love and loss, good and evil.”

“Yes, that is true,” Diana admitted with a nod. “That is why we are here. We protect the good in this world from those who would seek to harm others.” She then looked at Pyrrha and placed her hand on her shoulder. “What you and your friends are doing, facing your fears head on and not letting what happened to you dictate your lives? It is nothing short of admirable. Remember that.”

“I will,” Pyrrha replied with a smile. It was then that her smile disappeared as she focused on something in the distance, causing Diana to look at her in confusion. Turning her head to where Pyrrha was staring, she saw nothing.

“What is it? What did you see?” she asked while standing up, Pyrrha doing the same.

“I saw… I thought I saw an armored man,” Pyrrha said with a great amount of worry. Diana’s eyes widened, and she immediately took off. For a moment, the huntress wondered whether or not she should follow or head back to warn the others. She then narrowed her gaze and took off after the Wonder Woman.

She followed Diana quickly through the hills and forest, occasionally passing by odd marks on the ground. Each one filled her with dread, and she was increasingly happy that she decided to go out of the arena with her weapons, shield, and armor from the tournament. Whatever had spooked Diana, it wasn’t anything good. As she passed through the forest, she began to hear something, and she paused just behind a tree to look out over a large cliffside, and she gasped.

There, not twenty feet away, she saw the littered bodies of over a dozen Amazons. Blood was staining the ground, pouring from the bodies from fresh wounds. Forcing herself to press on, Pyrrha took out her weapons and edged closer to a small cluster of bodies. Kneeling down, she inspected the corpses to try and determine how exactly they had died.

“Animal?” she whispered as she took note of a large gash along the woman’s side, far too jagged to be from a sword. A puncture wound along the throat was of a similar shape, likely from the fang of some beast. Hurrying to the other bodies, she quickly noticed how they too were similar, although a few also had arrows sticking out of them. She also noticed a large amount of shattered stone littered across the landscape, and she wondered exactly what had happened.

It was then that she noticed the bodies appeared to be forming a sort of trail. The Amazons were chasing something, while other things were attacking them. Following the trail, she came across the body of a large, humanoid creature. The torso was as wide across as her outstretched arms, its skin was a pale white, and a large club the size of a tree trunk was lying next to its hand. On its face was a single large eye, glossy and unmoving. She didn’t know what it was, but judging by the wounds across its body, it was dead. Recently, too.

“The Doom Door,” she gasped she suddenly realized exactly where they were. She raced forward, passing by more and more bodies of both Amazon and monstrous creatures. A man with the head of a bull, a large serpent with multiple heads burned at the stump, even a lion like creature with a goat’s head and serpent tail. With increasing alarm, Pyrrha began to realize that the fears they had the previous night were not unfounded and that something recently had escaped. It must have happened so quickly that no one could raise the alarm.

Pyrrha paused as she neared the entrance of the cave. She knew that, down there, the Doom Door was waiting, and that something would likely be lurking there as well. Diana was nowhere in sight, and Pyrrha could only assume that she somehow lost her. She was on her own, and she couldn’t help but feel frightened. At the same time, she knew that she could not let this continue, and so with a deep breath she pulled out her scroll and activated the emergency beacon. She placed it on a broken pedestal where a statue previously stood then, with her sword and shield at the ready, she descended into the abyss.

* * *

Diana chased after the figure, fury in her eye and sword in hand. She knew exactly who Pyrrha had seen, and she could only hope that she went back to get help. Moving past the underbrush, they continued up the hills and mountains to the center of Paradise Island. The armored man seemed to be taunting her, purposefully keeping within her sight and only disappearing for brief moments to lead her exactly where he wanted her to go. Likely to a trap, but Diana couldn’t afford to leave him be.

Coming across a large stone cliffside, the same one Ren and Nora had described climbing the previous day, Diana leaped high into the air and landed at its top. She prepared to move again, only to pause when she saw a man standing at the edge, looking over the island with his arms crossed behind his back.

“Hello, Diana,” the man said as he continued looking out over the island, unconcerned that Diana was now pointing her sword at him.

“Ares…” she growled, an action that only caused the God of War to chuckle as he turned to face her. From underneath his helmet, she could see his red eyes and thick beard. “What are you doing here?”

“Come now. Am I not allowed to welcome my half-sister back to her ancestral home?” he asked with a mocking smile. Diana responded by angrily punching the stone next to her, creating a large crack in the rock. “Anger does not suit you, my dear. You really should work on that temper. It’s unbecoming.”

“The only thing that’s unbecoming is you,” Diana spat, yet kept her distance. The two divine beings stared at each other in silence before Diana finally spoke again. “Did you give it to him?”

“Give what to whom?” Ares asked with that insufferable smirk on his face.

“Did. You. Give. Crane. The formula.” Diana emphasized each word with as much venom as she could muster, and Ares merely chuckled.

“Yes, I did,” he admitted. Diana moved to lunge at him, only for him to hold up his palm. “Peace, Diana. I did not come here to fight.”

“Then why are you here?” Ares laughed again, making Diana’s blood boil.

“I came here to teach, not to fight.” Ares disappeared into a wisp of smoke and reappeared right next to Diana, facing the opposite direction of her. “Besides, our father would not want siblings to fight on this sacred land, would he not?”

“Last I recalled, you killed him.”

“For a time, yes. Until he reformed, at which point he immediately came back here and made your younger sister with the Queen.” Ares chuckled to himself. “Of course, this one actually _was_ made of clay, and not an actual child.”

“Do _not_ speak of Donna that way!” she hissed as she turned to swing her sword at the god, only for him to turn into smoke once again and reappear out of reach.

“Oh, I’m not judging. Everyone knows how spiteful Hera can be, and making Donna as he and Hippolyta did was able to spare her Hera’s wrath.”

“Get to the point,” Diana said, causing Ares to smirk at getting under her skin.

“Alright. Yes, I did give Crane that formula, the one your people safeguarded so closely. But do you know why?”

“Because you wanted to cause death and destruction to innocent people.”

“Sister, we both know that is an oversimplification,” Ares countered. “There are no innocent people, especially in that squalor your friends call a city. Besides, once again you are misappropriating blame onto me.”

Diana remained silent, causing Ares to smile.

“Honestly, his mind was so warped that it didn’t even take much for him to decide of his own free will to take that gas and modify it. You and I both know that Maru’s discovery had many potential applications for the benefit of mankind. A simple change here or there and the chemical could be turned into a brand new medicine or anesthetic for surgery. But instead, that man did what man always does. He chose destruction.”

“Do not absolve yourself of this, Ares. You gave Crane that formula knowing what he would do with it. Don’t try to pretend that there was any other outcome.”

“Was there, Diana? Was there?” Ares chuckled again. “Crane hadn’t been operating for months at that point. He was on the path to “recovery”, you would call it. But one simple whisper into his mind, one of a new formula that captured his curiosity, was all it took to start back up his obsession with fear. One spark. That’s all it ever takes to get them to kill each other.”

Diana glared at Ares, and the God merely laughed before continuing.

“But, I’m not here to talk about the failures of Man. We both know how extensive that list is, despite your best efforts to change them these past few decades.” Ares laughed again. “After all, they started the Second World War when I was dead.”

“A war which started from the treaty you created!” Diana countered. “Had you not caused the Treaty to turn into such a cruel instrument as it was, the war might not have been fought!”

“Come now. Please tell me you aren’t that naïve still? We both know that war was inevitable. If not against Germany and Hitler than against the Soviet Union and Stalin. It was a powder keg waiting to blow. Besides, if I recall, you did nothing to stop it. Merely content to sit and wallow in—”

Diana threw her sword through Ares’ head, the god dissipating into smoke as soon as the weapon made contact. It continued until it sank into the rock behind him, all the way up the hilt.

“Do. Not. Speak of him,” Diana growled once more.

“Touched a nerve, didn’t I?” When Diana said nothing, Ares continued. “Still, you did eventually join in that war. Even killed the man who started it. Still, how ironic is it that the people you fought with created the very weapons that allowed me to be reborn?”

Diana knew exactly what he was referring to. Even today, the power of the atomic bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki terrified her. They truly had the power to end the world in an instant, and to hear that Ares was reborn in them when they were first used did not surprise her in the least.

“Stop lecturing me on things that I already know,” Diana demanded. “I am not blind to the darkness in Men’s hearts, but you are blind to the goodness in them. Just as they are capable of terrible acts of cruelty and violence, they are also capable of heroism and love. You gave Crane that formula because you knew _he_ would use it as he did, but there are thousands, if not millions of doctors and scientists the world over who would have used it to heal if they knew how. Now, give me a reason why I should not run you through right now. I killed you before. I can do it again.”

“Oh, I don’t doubt that. You know, it’s funny how peaceful and loving you Amazons proclaim to be, yet every single one is a trained warrior, ready to kill at a moment’s notice. Not to mention how biased your people are in general, or ineffective they are at your supposed duty in the world.”

Diana stomped towards him while pulling out her lasso, only for Ares to laugh.

“Diana you don’t want to fight me. Not now.” Diana ignored him, continuing to march towards him. “Not when your guest is about to fight a Gorgon.”

Diana stopped immediately, a look of horror and concern appearing on her face before warping into one of rage. “What did you-!”

“On this, I did nothing, I assure you,” Ares interjected. “Even if I wanted to, I am prevented from interfering on Themyscira directly, much less affect the Doom Door. No, that honor belongs to an Amazon.”

“What?” Diana gasped as she looked to see the cave entrance. At the same time, she heard a loud rumble from the city as large warning drums began to pound, coupled with the blaring of a large horn.

“The girl followed my trail pretty well, actually, and I do have to commend her foresight to call for help before going in on her own. Still, I do not envy her having to face against Stheno on her own.” Diana moved past him towards the cliff, terror for her friend clearly seen on her face. She could see hundreds of horses begin to ride out towards the cave, with more joining at every moment.

“Oh, one last thing. The Amazon that sabotaged the door? She was not native to Themsycira, nor Bana-Mighdall for that matter. She was born in Man’s World. Shaped by it, corrupted by it. I always told you man corrupts everything he touches. Even your own people.”

Diana ignored him as she ripped her sword out of the stone and leaped off the cliff, turning her jump into flight as she soared faster and faster to the Doom Door, hoping beyond hope that she wouldn’t be too late. As she did, Ares chuckled one last time before disappearing into thin air.

* * *

Pyrrha recognized that something was wrong almost immediately. There were more bodies the further she descended, many of which had arrows sticking out of them. There were a few more dead creatures along the way. There must have been a fierce battle, the only relief being that there were far fewer Amazon casualties than their monstrous adversaries.

When she finally entered the main chamber, she gasped and quickly hid behind a shattered column. Peeking around, she saw perhaps the most grotesque creature she had ever seen, even with its back turned to her. The lower body was that of a snake, while the upper was that of a scaly woman. Hairs made of living snakes rested atop her head, and a large bow was in her hand. Jagged arrows rested in a quiver on her hip, and she appeared to be searching around the room.

“Where is she?” she asked as she turned over every stone in the room. “Medusa, where are you?”

Pyrrha kept staring at the creature as it continued to search. The name Medusa sounded like it should have been important, but she didn’t know why. She turned her attention to the Doom Door, and she had to force herself not to gasp in alarm. It was cracked open along the outer edge, granting enough space for a few creatures to make it through. It appeared as though several Amazons had died trying to close it, even now she could see it shake as something larger tried to break free.

She then saw a faint movement against the back wall, and with a start, Pyrrha realized that one of the Amazons she had assumed to be dead was still alive. She was impaled to the wall by a thick arrow, yet she still managed to draw her bow with a single remaining arrow, aiming it at the creature. The Amazon then released her bowstring, striking the monster in the back and making it roar out in pain. Angrily, it turned round to see the smiling Amazon staring at her, and with its eyes closed the snake woman slithered over to the defenseless Amazon. It stopped in front of her, and the Amazon defiantly spat blood against its face.

“Die, monster,” she declared as the creature opened her eyes and stared the Amazon in the face. To Pyrrha’s horror, the Amazon began to turn into solid stone before her very eyes, and with a huff, the monster shattered the newly made statue with her tail. As a few chunks clattered against her stone cover, Pyrrha crouched down fully behind it, her mind racing at what to do. That creature had just looked at her, and the Amazon turned to stone. That obviously meant that meeting her gaze was not something she herself could do, and with that in mind she carefully ripped off a piece of cloth and wrapped it around her eyes. While she would prefer to fight with all of her senses, she would much rather not run the risk of turning into stone.

Unfortunately, it appeared that the action of ripping the cloth alerted the creature to her presence.

“Who goes there?” she yelled out while pulling out her bow. As the snake woman slithered against the ground, Pyrrha honed her senses to try and identify exactly where it was. “I know you’re there, Amazon. I can smell you. Come on out, and I won’t hurt you. All I want is my sister, whom one of you murdered.”

Pyrrha said nothing as she crept around her column, training her ears for any sound of movement. Occasionally, her hand would strike a rock, creating a small sound that made her wince. When the monster didn’t get a response, she stopped for a moment then continued to move. The sound was getting closer, and Pyrrha knew she had to move quickly.

“Or maybe you’re not an Amazon? Yes, I can smell it now. You’re something different, something…fresher.” Pyrrha could practically hear the smile on the monster’s face, but continued to remain quiet even as the sound got ever closer. As quietly as she could, Pyrrha grabbed a small rock and tested it in her hand, feeling the weight.

“Do you even know who I am?” Again, Pyrrha said nothing, and the monster took that as an answer. “I am Stheno, eldest daughter of Ceto and the first Gorgon.”

Pyrrha responded by chucking the rock to the far side of the room. Stheno heard the noise and followed after it, allowing Pyrrha to quickly move to hide behind a fallen column. She slid across the stone floor, feeling chunks of broken statue as she did. A few rocks were jettisoned away, sliding across the stone floor, and she could only hope the Gorgon didn’t find her. Knowing that these statues were likely the bodies of Amazons made her feel sick to her stomach, but she kept quiet and pressed herself against the column.

“Come out! I promise I won’t hurt you,” Stheno stated with a low hiss. Pyrrha again said nothing and kept quiet, a child could see that lie for what it was. Nothing she could say would convince Pyrrha to come out, not until she knew exactly how she was going to beat this thing. She was beginning to settle on cutting off her head. Her eyes were obviously her greatest strength, so taking them out would have to be a priority. She just needed a way to target it.

Suddenly, the movement stopped, and everything became quiet. The silence unnerved Pyrrha immensely, and she strained her ears to try and find the Gorgon once again. When she felt a presence suddenly get close to her, a sense of dread filled her body and soul.

“Hello there, young one,” Stheno greeted, and Pyrrha responded by turning around and swinging her sword towards where she figured the neck was. Stheno countered by slamming her thick tail against Pyrrha, sending her flying through a column and shattering it into tiny pieces. She rolled as she hit the ground, managing to get to her feet, only to dive to the side as the gorgon fired an arrow at her. It missed and hit another stone column, sending shattered stone from where the missile hit. Stheno continued to fire arrow after arrow at Pyrrha, who continued to run and use her aura-enhanced senses to make sure she didn’t run into anything. While Ren’s may have been better than hers, she could still sense enough to get the job done.

“Stay still!” Stheno ordered as she grabbed another arrow, only for Pyrrha to use her Semblance on a nearby metal brazier, ripping it off of its foundation and hurling it towards the Gorgon. The monster raised her tail to block it, only to have hot embers wash over her leathery tail, making her screech in pain. Pyrrha took the opening to lunge at the monster, stabbing into her cut with her sword before cursing after remembering that it was blunted. It didn’t sink very far, and she was forced to let go of it and backflip over another swing of the tail.

“Grr-AAGH!” Stheno screamed as she ripped the blade out of her body, blood beginning to pour out and hit the stone floor, hissing as it did. “You bitch! You think you can kill me!?”

Pyrrha responded by holding her shield out in front of her. “No. I _will_ kill you.”

“Such arrogance!” Stheno roared as she slithered towards Pyrrha far too quickly than a creature of her size should have. The Gorgon grabbed Pyrrha by the shield and charged her through another column before slamming her against the stone floor. As she moved to attack again, Pyrrha grabbed a fallen stone block and slammed it into the Gorgon’s body, rocking her back and making her screech from the pain. Pyrrha took the opportunity to run off, carefully feeling out with her senses for anything she could use against the creature. She smiled as she sensed the abundance of bronze weapons scattered around the room, and with a deep breath she reached out and attracted all of them. Beads of sweat appeared on her forehead as she angled the assorted spears and swords at the gorgon’s general direction. At the same time, she could hear the sound of the stone slab continuing to shake as something heavy pounded against it, and her heart began to beat faster. When Stheno roared loudly, Pyrrha launched the weapons like a fragmentation grenade in reverse, followed by a series of wet sounds as the Gorgon was pincushioned by the Amazonian weaponry. Her subsequent screech was bloodcurdling, forcing the huntress to cover her ears as the Gorgon flailed in pain before it finally stopped.

For a moment Pyrrha smiled, thinking she had avenged the Amazon’s deaths. That smile disappeared when she heard the clattering of bronze hitting the stone floor, and with shock, she realized that Stheno had ripped the weapons free from her body.

Stheno roared again as she raced towards Pyrrha, forcing the huntress to continue to move, leaping over any and all destroyed columns and avoiding the shot arrows. The few that hit were absorbed by her still recovering aura, but that didn’t mean that stopped the pain.

When the tail shot out and stuck her back again, Pyrrha was prepared for it. She twisted her body and grabbed hold of it, then swung it like a flail. Stheno’s body hit the shattered columns like a wrecking ball, each impact causing the gorgon to gasp out in pain, but Pyrrha knew it wasn’t enough. She could feel the tight muscles of the tail, which only hinted at the vast strength the creature had. Strength that was shown when Stheno contracted, bringing her torso to Pyrrha and wrapping her body around the huntress’. Her tail coiled around her prey, and the Gorgon began to squeeze as tightly as she could.

“AAGH!” Pyrrha screamed as she felt the constriction squeeze against her, her aura straining to prevent any actual injury, while Stheno merely laughed.

“Ohoho, how I love the sight of humans gasping for breath in futile struggle!” the Gorgon declared as she drew her maw ever closer. Seeing Pyrrha continue to writhe only made the creature laugh harder, and as she opened her mouth to bite down, a whistling sound caught her attention. She turned to face it, only to have a bronze dagger already hurling through the air stab her in the eye. She screamed, loosening her hold on Pyrrha while clutching at the dagger, and while Pyrrha gasped for breath she leaped up and took hold of the weapon, grabbed the handle, and stabbed it into the other eye.

“AAGH! MY EYES! I CAN’T SEE! I CAN’T SEE!” Stheno screamed as she flailed her body from side to side, shaking Pyrrha off and sending her flying. As she did, a pair of arms gently caught her and brought her to safety behind an intact pillar, then removed the red cloth covering her eyes and revealing the relieved face of Diana Prince.

“Diana!” Pyrrha proclaimed with joy while Diana tightly hugged her in relief.

“Oh, thank the Gods you’re alright,” she said as she released Pyrrha from her embrace then turned to look back at the flailing gorgon, righteous fury in her eyes. “Dammit, of all the things to get through…”

“You know her?” Pyrrha asked, and Diana nodded.

“Yes, but I’ll explain later. Right now, we need to get her through that door.”

“Shouldn’t we kill her?”

“Stheno’s immortal. Any wounds we cause will only last a short time. You cut off her head, she’ll eventually grow a new body to replace it.” Diana shook her head. Pyrrha looked at the wounds she had caused on the Gorgon, and already she could see them slowly begin to heal. Pyrrha then looked at the Doom Door, seeing the gap continuing to expand ever so slightly with each bang.

“But there’s things trying to get through!” Pyrrha proclaimed as Diana handed her a sharpened sword.

“I noticed. One problem at a time.”

With a snarl, Stheno turned to face Diana and Pyrrha, her eyes sealed shut through congealed blood. Even still, Pyrrha could see the grievous wounds continue to heal, something that severely limited them on time. Stheno hissed and launched at them, forcing the two women to dive away in opposite directions and causing the Gorgon to slam into the wall. A loud crack ensued as her head chipped the stone, red blood staining where she had hit it. When the Gorgon turned to face her once again, Pyrrha could see a sizable chunk of her skull was now caved in, but the fact that she was still standing alarmed her.

Stheno then roared like an animal, picking up a chunk of stone with her tail and hurling it at Diana. Rather than dodge it, the Wonder Woman merely slammed her shield against it, shattering the rock into tiny pebbles in a display of sheer strength. The Gorgon then leaped onto her, forcing the Amazon into a grapple. Stheno wrapped her tail around Diana, only for the Amazon to pry the coiled tail open with her legs, using her shield to keep the snapping jaws at bay and repeatedly stabbing into the gorgon’s gut with her sword. After a relentless assault, Stheno finally loosened her grip, allowing Diana the leverage needed to hurl her across the room and into the far wall. The stone cracked under her weight, breaking the creature’s back and forcing her to flop onto the ground uselessly.

“That won’t stop her for long,” Diana noted as she went back over to a flabbergasted Pyrrha. She had been having trouble facing off against the Gorgon, but Diana made Stheno look like she was nothing. Seeing how the Wonder Woman was now looking at her, Pyrrha shook her head and looked around the room, then nodded.

“I have an idea,” she said as she ran over and ripped metal braziers out of the wall and chucked them into the central pyre. As she did, they began to glow hot, and behind them they could hear the gorgon begin to stir, her broken back cracking as her body repaired the damage before their very eyes. Once she had enough, Pyrrha concentrated on the now glowing hot metal objects and pulled at them, the heat increasing their malleability and allowing her to form them into bands. Once they reached the desired shape, she flung them at the Gorgon, wrapping the still hot bands around the wrists and over the eyes. Stheno screamed and flailed, even as Pyrrha pulled the bound wrists together and slammed the hot makeshift cuffs together, fusing them.

“There, that will hold her longer,” Pyrrha declared before turning back to face the Door.

“I do hope you know not to do that against an actual person,” Diana noted, and Pyrrha nodded.

“I only did that because I knew she’d heal from it, however long it took.” Pyrrha scoffed and pointed to the large metal clamps. “I think I can use my Semblance to pull the door open. If we time it right, we may be able to—”

She was interrupted by a loud clang as Stheno struggled against her brace, and the two women turned to look at her and then each other.

“Hurry,” Diana commanded while pulling out her sword. She walked closer to the Gorgon, banging her sword against her shield as she did, while Pyrrha breathed in deeply. She then concentrated, focusing her Semblance on the metal braces of the slab, then pulled. Her body strained under the pressure, threatening to keel over as the stone slab ground against the floor. She could only hope that her friends would arrive soon.

Behind her, she could hear the sound of Stheno snapping her shackles and attacking Wonder Woman. The two engaged in vicious battle, Diana stabbing and slicing with her sword as well as slamming the Gorgon against her shield. Stheno fought back with tooth and claw, scraping them against the metal shield while whipping Diana with her tail. Each swipe was accentuated by a loud crack, and Diana had to force herself to not grunt in pain from the blow, even as red marks appeared on her body. With a yell, Diana delivered a flying knee to Stheno’s head, only for the Gorgon to snarl and wrap her thick tail around Diana’s leg then hurl her across the room and hit the wall next to Pyrrha.

As Pyrrha keeled from the strain of nearly overextending her Semblance while also keeping the slab from being fully opened, Diana lunged back towards the Gorgon, her sword piercing the chest and pinning Stheno to the ground. As the Gorgon wailed, she whipped her tail against Diana’s chest, knocking her into the ceiling before sending her back down. Stealing a glance, Pyrrha could see that much of the wounds she had were mostly healed, exemplified when the Gorgon began to try and claw out band embedded into her eyes. Steam erupted from the scaled face, and the skin surrounding the eyes, what little Diana could see, was charred black and peppered by bits of exposed bone.

Knowing that she couldn’t let that happen, Diana unfurled her lasso and flung its loop at the Gorgon, tightening it and binding the arms to her body. Stheno struggled against the magical rope, trying to drag Diana along, but the Amazon dug her feet into the ground then pulled. Stheno flew forward into Diana’s fist, knocking the Gorgon upward. Diana followed, punching her in the face yet again then throwing her down to the ground, followed by flinging her sword and shield at the Gorgon like missiles. As Stheno bounced on the ground, Diana’s sword pierced her stomach, followed by the edge of the shield joining it. Diana then slammed feet first into Stheno’s body, only to dismissively tear her equipment out of their impromptu sheathes.

“Stay down if you know what’s good for you,” Diana spat as she grabbed hold of the lasso once more. Stheno struggled, but the Lasso of Hestia was too great for the monster to break free.

“Gaagh! Let me go!” Stheno demanded, but Diana only responded by tightening her lasso’s hold. Behind her, she could hear the groan of the slab, as well as the sounds of Amazons running into the cave.

“Never, creature,” Diana spat as the first Amazons sprinted into the cave. Several went to help Diana hold the Gorgon down, while more went to help Pyrrha pry the door open just wide enough to force the monster through and prevent any more escapes.

“Pyrrha!” Jaune yelled as he ran into the room, along with the rest of his team and team RWBY. Each of them had their weapons unfurled, and as RWBY pointed their weapons at the contained creature, Jaune himself went to go inspect his partner.

“Hrrg… Hey, Jaune…” Pyrrha grunted as she began holding the slab in place. In front of her, Amazons with spears began thrusting into the small space between it and the wall, preventing any monsters from escaping. Each thrust produced a monstrous roar, loud enough to rattle their bones and ears. “I’m sorry…”

“Don’t be,” Jaune insisted as Diana and a few other Amazons dragged the Gorgon to the wall. “Are you hurt?”

“I’ll be fine. Just…need a bit of rest after this…”

“Yeah, I bet you do.” Jaune couldn’t help but chuckle at her response, then turned to look at the room. Already, Amazons were beginning to gingerly carry the bodies of their fallen sisters out of the room, likely to begin preparations for a funeral, and he couldn’t help but sigh. “What a mess.”

“Yeah,” Pyrrha agreed as Stheno was violently hurled past the Doom Door. As soon as she did, Pyrrha pushed the metal clamps, forcing the door to close once more. More Amazons added their strength, helping to close the stone slab with a heavy clunk. Immediately, Pyrrha collapsed to her knees and panted while the Amazons began hammering in the clamps back to the wall. Jaune knelt down next to her, and she then saw Diana walk up to her with a stoic expression on her face.

“You did well, Pyrrha,” she said before helping the huntress to her feet. The two women nodded at each other, then stepped forth out of the room and to the waiting Amazons outside.

* * *

The rest of the day went by somberly. The festival, which was meant to take place over the course of a few days, was obviously canceled in the wake of the attack. It was hard to go to sleep that night, but eventually, everyone did. The next day, RWBY and JNPR were witness to something they hadn’t thought they would ever have to see: an Amazon funeral.

Similar to ancient Greek customs, the day-long funeral procession was composed of three parts. The prothesis, where the bodies were displayed in their armors, and drachmas placed onto their eyes, meant to pay the toll to cross the river Styx. Families and comrades mourned around them, remaining as stoic as possible, while eyes watered. None of the Amazons wailed, although Yang could tell several were close to it. Afterward, as the sun set, came the ekphora, where the bodies were carefully transferred to the burial ground all fallen Amazons shared. Mourners watched the procession go, with RWBY and JNPR watching from atop their guest house as the procession passed them by. They joined the final part, a banquet called the perideipnon, despite feeling they had no right.

Afterward, they somberly walked back to their guest house, Donna joining them on its roof.

“How did this happen?” Ruby asked as she stared up at the moon. “Why would an Amazon do this to her own people?”

“Traitors exist everywhere,” Weiss noted with a sigh as she joined her partner. “Themyscira’s no different.”

“My question is, where’d she come from? Diana said that Ares told her the traitor wasn’t born on Themyscira, so how’d she get on the island in the first place?” Jaune asked with a grim expression.

“I don’t know,” Donna answered with a scowl. The thought that one of her sisters would do such a thing infuriated her. She knew that traitors existed, but never thought that one would come from the Amazons. She thought they were above such a thing, but it appears they were wrong. Hearing the report about how a journal had been stolen from the royal vault during the attack was just the insult to this horrible injury. “In any case, my mother will be closing the island to outsiders. I’m afraid that you all will be forced to leave.”

“I understand completely,” Weiss stated with a nod. “Queen Hippolyta must keep her people safe.”

“Yes, but by now it’s obvious that you all can be trusted completely,” Donna countered. “You shouldn’t be kicked out like potential threats.”

“We’re not offended, Donna,” Ren stated. “We thank you for our time here. You have been a gracious host, and I don’t think we can say that enough.”

“There’s no need.” Donna smiled, only to frown immediately afterwards. “Still, you guys were expecting to spend a week down here. You only spent three days, and something tells me that you don’t want to go back up to the Watchtower just yet.”

“Yeah, that’s not going to be the best,” Yang admitted. “But, it’s not so bad.”

The others murmured in agreement, and Donna sighed. She had spent some time in the Watchtower before, and she had never liked it. It was too cold, too artificial. Nothing about it was real or natural. Not like Themyscira, or even one of the cities of Man’s World. Even Gotham City sometimes had more life to it than the Watchtower.

It was then that the Wonder Girl perked up, a thought entering her head.

“Actually,” she began, catching the other’s attention, “I think…I have an idea.”

The others looked at her in interest, cocking their heads as to what exactly was on the Amazon’s mind.

* * *

In a large living room, a phone began to ring. The noise echoed across the empty room, only to be joined by the sound of calm footsteps.

“I got it!” a woman yelled out as she picked up the device. “Hello? Friend Donna! How are you? How is Themyscira?” The woman paused as Donna repeated the events of the previous few days, and she gasped.

“Oh, that is most dreadful! Is everything alright?” she asked and waited as Donna explained that her home would be, in time. “Oh, that is good to hear. Do you require any assistance?”

The woman waited, nodding along and muttering in understanding as Donna explained her proposal. A smile steadily grew across her face, and she began to float steadily upwards.

“That sounds wonderful!” she proclaimed excitedly. “We will be more than happy to have them join us! I’ll go let the others know right away!” Donna thanked her friend just as she hung up the phone, then the excited girl called out as loud as she could.

“Everyone, I have the best of news! Also the bad news, but we will address both!”

 [~][~]


	8. Batcomputer Files - Analysis 1

**_Accessing Batcomputer Archives_ **

**_Username: Dark Knight_ **

**_Password: **********_ **

**_…._ **

**_…_ **

**_Welcome, Batman. Please select file for review:_ **

**_…_ **

**_…_ **

**_Subject: Analysis on Remnantians: Lie Ren_ **

**_Accessing Archive_ **

**~**

Name: Lie Ren (goes by familial name of Ren)

Age: 17

Species: Remnantian

Alias: None

Equipment: Stormflower, a pair of fully automatic 9mm pistols with downward facing bayonets for close-quarters combat.

Semblance: Emotion Suppression: Capable of suppressing an individual or small group’s emotions

Bio: Lie Ren is a native of the kingdom of Mistral, the largest of the four major kingdoms on Remnant. At a young age, he and his family lived in a growing settlement called Kuroyuri before it was tragically destroyed by an Elder Grimm. During this attack, his mother and father were both killed and he, along with a young Nora Valkyrie, were the only survivors. This event set him on the path to becoming a Huntsman, determined to ensure that the tragedy that befell his family would never happen to anyone else ever again.

Strengths:

Expert Martial Artist: Ren has a mastery of several different fighting styles from Remnant that are similar to Earth’s karate, taekwondo, and wing chun. This allows him to quickly adapt to many close quarters scenarios and situations on the fly

Expert Aura Manipulation: Ren’s knowledge on Aura is second to none among the group at hand, capable of focusing his Aura on specific points and applying it where needed. This skill has translated to a much more enhanced sensory network than others, allowing him to detect oncoming threats well before they are seen.

Logical Mindset: Ren, even without the use of his Semblance, is capable of keeping a level head under most situations. This mindset would enable him to continue operating in stressful situations that would otherwise break another person.

Semblance: The attack on Gotham City by Jonathan Crane/Scarecrow showed just how useful Ren’s Semblance truly is. By using it, he was able to counteract the effects of the Fear Toxin the others, including myself, had fallen victim to and allowed him the chance to apprehend Crane when he might otherwise have gotten away. Debriefing after the battle revealed that Ren was indeed under the effects of the fear toxin, suffering from its associated hallucinations the entire time. However, his Semblance was able to stop him from being afraid of what he was seeing, allowing him to logically deduce what everything he was seeing truly was and take action. This Semblance shows tremendous potential in heavy psychological situations and its use should be encouraged whenever applicable.

Weaknesses:

Emotional Outbursts: Although Ren is capable of keeping his emotions in check, harming his comrades runs the risk of him losing control of his emotions and making him lash out. Should Nora Valkyrie be directly harmed, his emotional control becomes almost non-existent. In any case, these moments represent a tremendous weakness for him, and a skilled combatant can use this weakness to move Ren into an undesirable situation, putting him and others at risk of harm.

Endurance: While still beyond that of a normal Earth human, Ren’s physical stamina is noticeably less robust than his peers’, including Weiss Schnee without extensive use of her Semblance. While mitigated by his efficient movements and use of his Aura, heavy impacts seem to particularly drain him.

Areas for Training:

Semblance expansion to involve multiple people at once regularly.

Furthering martial arts training to include more styles from Earth.

Physical conditioning to improve endurance.

More powerful and versatile ranged options.

Forensics training to compliment his naturally logical and deductive mindset.

~

**Access Level Black**

**Require Secure Login to Access**

**Password: *************************

**Access Granted**

**~**

Strategy for Subdual:

Should Lie Ren be placed under mind control or otherwise forced into opposition against the League, the most likely tactic to work would be to force him into losing control of his emotions. This makes him lash out, and although it does make him much more dangerous to fight against, the emotional unbalance creates weak points to counter. Risk of not working should mind-control be involved.

Stealth tactics less likely to work due to enhanced reflexes and sensory capabilities. Speed and Aura defenses make a light, rapid approach to attacking less effective. A powerful blow delivered at an opportune moment has the best chance of breaking his Aura and neutralizing the threat. Explosives will cause sufficient damage while limiting ability to evade and parry.

As with all the Remnantians, I am developing an Aura-sensing nanite that will attack a person’s body from the inside, forcing the Aura to be depleted from trying to fight it off. Once the Aura is depleted, the nanites power off and are harmlessly flushed out of the system through sweat. Simulations are still ongoing, but results are promising.

* * *

 

**_Accessing Batcomputer Archives_ **

**_Username: Dark Knight_ **

**_Password: **********_ **

**_…_ **

**_…_ **

**_Welcome, Batman. Please select file for review:_ **

**_…_ **

**_…_ **

**_Selection: Analysis on Remnantians: Pyrrha Nikos_ **

**_Accessing Archive_ **

**~**

Name: Pyrrha Nikos

Age: 18

Species: Remnantian

Alias: None

Equipment: Miló and Akoúo, a sword and shield combination. The sword, Miló, has three configurations: a javelin, a xiphos-style sword, and a semi-automatic rifle chambered for .30 caliber ammunition. Akoúo is a small, round shield strong enough to block small arms fire.

Semblance: Polarity: Capable of manipulating ferromagnetic fields on all metals, regardless of whether or not the metal in question is ferromagnetic itself.

Bio: A tournament fighter from Mistral’s Sanctum Academy, Pyrrha Nikos rose prominently in the Mistralian Tournament circuits. The victor of the Mistral Regional Tournament for four successive years, Pyrrha desired to use her fighting skills not for profit but in the defense of others. As such, upon graduation from Sanctum she applied to Beacon Academy to further her training as a huntress. There she was partnered with Jaune Arc, whom she began personally tutoring in combat.

_Update – Romantic feelings towards Jaune Arc have been confirmed via Lasso of Truth._

Strengths:

Expert Swordsman: Pyrrha Nikos has a mastery of several different sword-play styles that are similar to ancient Greek and Roman-style swordsmanship. Her reaction time is fast enough to block oncoming fire with her weapons.

Marksmanship: Pyrrha’s marksmanship, both with Miló’s gun and javelin configuration, is remarkable. She is capable of accurately hitting a falling, man-sized target from hundreds of feet away with a thrown javelin, according to testimony from Jaune Arc. Records from training with Vigilante collaborates that capability with her rifle.

Psychological Manipulation: Pyrrha, through the use of her Semblance (see below), is able to manipulate how people perceive her fighting ability. Through subtle use, she is able to create the illusion of invincibility, causing her opponents to lash out or retreat in consequence, thereby giving her an edge in combat.

Skilled Teacher: According to testimony from Jaune Arc, Pyrrha Nikos is an exceptional teacher. Her patient mindset and empathetic nature allowed her to better see exactly which areas he needed improvement in. As a result, in less than a year she was able to take Jaune from a boy with minimal amounts of self-taught training to the equivalent of a four-year graduate of one of the preliminary combat schools.

Semblance: Given how most weapons are composed of metals, Pyrrha’s Polarity Semblance is a remarkable advantage. She is able to both subtly manipulate her opponent’s weapons in combat (see above in _Psychological Manipulation_ ), as well as throw heavy metal objects with ease. Currently, Pyrrha is capable of reliably lifting objects weighing two tons.

Weaknesses:

Leadership: Although Pyrrha is an exceptional fighter and capable of making decisions on her own, her own leadership capabilities are lacking. She has little to no desire to maintain the spotlight or promote her own aims over other people’s, on account of the social isolation she experienced due to her status as a champion tournament fighter. As such, she usually deigns to follow others’ lead.

Obligation: Pyrrha tends to over-burden herself in regards to taking on her opponents. Evidence gathered during training shows that Pyrrha immediately takes on the strongest enemies by herself, leaving the other, weaker opponents for her teammates. This runs the risk of her facing against an adversary she cannot beat, such as her confrontation with Stheno. Had Diana not arrived in time, it is most likely Pyrrha would have died.

Stress: Stemming from Pyrrha’s tendency to over-burden herself, high levels of stress can shatter her concentration, making her make mistakes she otherwise would not have made and causing her Semblance to behave erratically.

Over-reliance on her Semblance: Despite her vast combat skill, Pyrrha does rely on her Semblance as a safety net in combat, if a subconscious one. Should her opponent use non-metal weaponry, such as wood, glass, or ceramic, she runs the risk being caught off guard. In addition, the large-scale use of her Semblance will tire her out quickly, draining her Aura and leaving her defenseless.

Areas for Training:

Further enhance combat skills to incorporate more Earth-style martial arts and swordplay styles.

Increase Semblance capability to lift heavier objects and reduce Aura exhaustion.

Encourage greater initiative in giving her own opinions and ideas in group operations.

Instill willingness to not shoulder sole responsibility for powerful opponents.

**~**

**_Access Level Black_ **

**_Require Secure Login to Access_ **

**_Password: ***********************_ **

**_Access Granted_ **

**_~_ **

Strategy for Subdual:

Should Pyrrha Nikos be placed under-mind control or otherwise forced into opposition against the League, removing her Semblance’s advantage is paramount. A ceramic-based armor and weapon system will ensure that she cannot manipulate her opponent. Awareness of all possible targets for her Semblance in the surrounding environment must also be maintained alongside her equipped armor and weaponry.

Aura-enhanced senses make stealth difficult, but not impossible, against her. Hit and run style attacks to slowly whittle down her Aura provides the greatest chance of success should a single, large attack not do the job.

Pitting Pyrrha against an overwhelming opponent should break her concentration, especially if her teammates are with her. Recommend against using this option due to unpredictability.

Progress on Aura-sensing nanites ongoing, but showing promise. Need to develop more effective counter against Aura and Semblances. Perhaps Nth Metal would work, due to its inherent anti-magical properties? Pit Hawkgirl against them for testing. Should it prove effective, use Thanagarian samples to create countermeasures (see project _Hunter-Bat_ ).

**[~][~]**


	9. Hunters of Justice Chibi! - 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Justice League deals with Martian Manhunter's Choco addiction, and Ruby saves Christmas.

_*Happy, up-tuned, jingly version of Justice League theme*_

Hunters of Justice Chibi!

* * *

 

**_Intervention_ **

* * *

 

“J’onn, we need to talk,” Superman declared as everyone sat around in the Martian Manhunter’s room, a large white banner with the word ‘intervention’ written on it.

“About what, might I ask?” J’onn asked as his gaze calmly looked at everyone, noting their looks of concern.

“Buddy, we love you,” Flash said, “but…you have a problem.”

“What problem?” J’onn asked, raising his eyebrow in confusion. Wonder Woman placed her hand on his shoulder, an empathetic look on her face.

“It’s okay, J’onn. It’s okay. We’re here for you, you know that right?” Diana stood up straighter, holding her hands in front of her waist while J’onn just looked more and more confused. Finally, Batman grimly shook his head and looked him straight in the eye.

“J’onn, we found the stash.” At once, J’onn’s confusion disappeared, only to be replaced by feigned ignorance.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he declared, subtly noticing how the room was enchanted to prevent him from phasing through. ‘ _Curse you, Fate._ ’

“J’onn, I think you do,” Superman insisted. “We’re not judging, but its become apparent to us that you have an addiction.”

“No I don’t.”

“Then why do you have two tons of Choco boxes in your closet?” Batman pointedly asked, to which J’onn stared at him stoically.

“…I’m holding them for a friend,” he finally answered, to which Batman narrowed his eyes in clear disbelief. He was too clever for that, and while J’onn normally appreciated that quality in the Dark Knight, right now he despised it.

“J’onn, we all know that’s a lie,” Batman stated while clasping his hands together and bringing them in front of his face. Knowing that it would be pointless to lie again, J’onn shifted to another tactic.

“It’s not hurting anyone,” J’onn insisted, only for Flash to shake his head.

“Buddy, that’s not true. Seeing you like this…it hurts all of us.” A pause then enveloped the group as they all stared at J’onn. “Also, the boxes fell on Jaune.”

* * *

 

_“Guys! Get me out of here! It’s so dark and dense! I think they’re double stuffed!_ ” Jaune’s muffled voice shouted out from underneath a mountain of Choco cookies.

“Hang on, Jaune! We’re almost there!” Ruby shouted while she continued to shovel cookies into her mouth. Long ago she had lost the taste for the chocolate and cream sandwich cookies, but with her duties as a huntress in mind, she continued to eat her way closer and closer to her trapped friend. She had already thrown up twice, but would not give in.

“Ruby, stop eating them!” Weiss chastised while she continued to dig with her bare hands.

“And let these cookies go to waste!?” Ruby shrieked.

“ _Yeah, Weiss! Seriously?_ ” Jaune’s voice, muffled as it was, sounded out again.

“You are trapped under them!”

“ _Yeah, but even I know not to let cookies go to waste! No matter the circumstances.”_

Before Weiss could even sigh in exasperation, Pyrrha suddenly burst into the room, eyes frantic. The others were right behind her, and upon seeing the pile of Chocos smothering her leader, her face warped with rage.

With a loud cry, she pulled several pots and pans out of thin air and leapt towards the pile of Chocos, determined to remove any obstacle between Jaune and his freedom.

* * *

 

“They managed to get him out, although Ruby had to be checked into the infirmary due to overconsumption,” Batman revealed.

“I am deeply sorry for Mr. Arc’s dilemma,” J’onn stated, sincerely regretful that his stash fell on the young boy, “but…”

“J’onn, please,” Superman begged, causing the Martian Manhunter to stop. Seeing this, Superman continued. “Given recent events, we have decided that we had to step in. As such, we are confiscating all Chocos from your room, and you are no longer permitted to have them.”

“What? You can’t be serious!” J’onn shouted. The others noted that, even when shouting, his voice was much flatter and dryer than their own.

“We are, J’onn. Please, we’re only trying to help you.” Once again, Wonder Woman put her hand on J’onn’s shoulder, only for the Martian to stare at her in anger. With a silent huff, he thought about walking out of the room, but figured that would be futile.

Sitting down, J’onn decided that he would sit through this ‘intervention’. He knew he didn’t need it. After all, he didn’t have a problem. He could stop whenever he wanted, he just didn’t want to. One way or another, he’d get his Chocos. J’onn J’onzz just had to figure out how.

* * *

 

It had been, admittedly, hard the past few weeks. The League had been very thorough in its quest to prevent him from acquiring more of his favorite food. No one was allowed to give him any, stores refused to sell them to him, and he was beginning to grow desperate. Which was why he was now in a dark alleyway in the dead of night, standing across from a silhouetted figure.

“Do you have it?” the figure asked, taking their hand and stroking it across their impressive mustache. Without saying a word, J’onn produced a bag from his pocket and tossed it into the darkness at the figure’s feet. Kneeling down, the dealer opened the bag to reveal the powder within, and carefully pinched some of the contents and brought it up to their nose.

“Hmm, Peruvian. This is good, real good.”

“Will it suffice?”

“I think it will, yes.” The figure chuckled as she stepped out of the shadows, revealing Nora wearing a fake mustache and wearing a leather trench coat. In her hands was a large box of extra-stuffed Chocos, which J’onn eyed hungrily.  Handing it to the Martian, Nora smiled. “Pleasure doing business with you again.”

“Same.” J’onn looked at the box happily and opened it while Nora gleefully skipped away to brew another pot of coffee. He then took a cookie from the box and ate it, savoring the taste.

“Mmmh. Delicious.”

 

* * *

 

**_How Ruby Saved Christmas_ **

* * *

 

_‘Twas the night before Christmas, and in blissful repose,_

_Rested all of our heroes, except for a Rose;_

“Muamha…” Ruby snored as she snuggled into her bed, only to suddenly bolt upright.

“…I have to use the restroom…” she said with utmost conviction, then disappeared in a burst of rose petals.

_She crept through the house, as quietly as she could,_

_Careful not to disturb her friends, nestled all snug in their bed._

_She passed by the chimney, eyeing the stockings all spread,_

_And she smiled, remembering the tales_

_Of how Santa Claus could solve all ails._

“How exactly a fat guy in red is supposed to deliver presents to seven billion people in one night is beyond me, but what do I know?” she admitted as she returned to her room, only to pause at a mouth-watering sight.

_Before her laid a plate of cookies and a warm glass of milk,_

_With hungry eyes, she scanned the room for any ilk._

“Eh, just one won’t hurt at all,” she reasoned and reached for a cookie, only to bolt upward in surprise.

_Above her came a sound, a loud bang that echoed in the hall,_

_Startled, she pulled her beloved weapon out of nowhere, the blade striking the wall._

_Curiosity filled her form, and she resolved to find the source,_

_No matter what she found, nothing would change her course._

“Who the heck keeps rhyming?” she wondered as she climbed the stairs.

_When she finally reached the open air, she gasped in wonder,_

_Before her, clad in red, was Saint Nicholas, cursing his blunder._

“Oh, poor Rudolph!” he cried, telling Ruby of his plight, “Without your nose, how will I see at night?”

_Ruby’s heart filled with pity, seeing a man so joyous now sad,_

_It was then that she knew what to do, her will become ironclad._

“Um, Mr. Santa Claus, sir?” she called out, her voice quiet. Yet Saint Nicholas heard it all the same, and he turned about in surprise.

“Why, hello dear Ruby Rose!” he called out, his sadness giving way for happy cries.

“…You know my name…?” she gasped in amazement, and the man before her laughed.

“Of course I know your name, silly girl! I have it right here, on my Nice List!” he said, pulling out a parchment all crinkled.

_True to his word, for which she held no doubt,_

_She saw her name emblazoned in red, and she couldn’t help but shout._

_Father Christmas laughed heartily, her joy filling him with glee,_

_While the girl calmed herself quickly, before launching into a question spree._

_He explained what had happened, a most tragic of tales,_

_Of how Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer fell to a most peculiar of ails._

“He struck a bee, you see,” he said as he pointed to the swollen nose, “and now it just won’t shine.”

“Oh, that’s awful,” she cried and pet the creature, the reindeer purring softly and kicking its hind leg back rapidly like a dog.

“Yes, and I’m afraid that I simply can’t go on this year,” he wailed to her, and she let out a single tear. The light glistened off of it, reflecting off of her eyes, and Santa Claus was drawn to them.

“Wait, Ruby…” he said softly, catching her attention, “You…have silver eyes…”

“Um…yes,” she answered, wondering how this would make his problem subside. Then, with a hearty laugh, Santa Claus held out his hand.

“Ruby Rose, you have a very special gift in those eyes! They may just be the key to saving Christmas this year!” he explained, and Ruby’s heart grew.

“What do I need to do?” she asked, any semblance of hesitation gone.

“I need you…to believe,” he said, and Ruby scrunched her eyes closed. She reached deep into her soul, allowing the hopes of Christmas to fill her heart and hold it aloft, before opening her eyes wide.

_Ruby’s eyes shone brightly like starlight, becoming a beacon in the night,_

_Santa cheered loudly, knowing they were still in this fight._

“Ruby Rose, with your eyes so bright, will you guide my sleigh tonight?” he asked politely, ignoring the lights of Ruby’s eyes shining into his.

“Yes, I will,” she said with a smile brighter than the stars, then mounted Rudolph and stared afar.

“Now, Dasher! Now, Dancer! Now, Prancer and Vixen!

“On, Comet! On, Cupid! On, Donder and Blitzen!

“Away we go, into the night!

“Guided forward by bright Ruby’s light!”

_Together as one, the two travelled across the land,_

_Giving presents to all the good boys and girls, none ever bland._

_From America to Africa, to Australia to Asia,_

_None were missed in their globetrotting fantasia._

_At the end of the night, when all presents were given,_

_They soared all triumphant, to their goal they had striven._

“Is that all of them, Mr. Claus?” she asked from the front of the sleigh, only for Saint Nicholas to shake his head.

“No, my child. I’m afraid not. There is still yet one more stop.”

“Who?” she asked, becoming perplexed when he pulled out a giant lump of coal.

“I must deliver this to one last man. But, I cannot ask you to come with me on this journey, so I will take you home now.”

“But…”

“No, Ruby. Our time, however pleasant, must now come to an end,” he said with sadness in his eyes as they returned to their quaint house. The light disappeared from Ruby’s eyes, replaced with sadness at leaving her newest friend. She got off his sleigh, giving Rudolph one final pat, then trudged back into her home.

“Wait, Ruby!” Santa Claus called out, causing the young girl to turn around in surprise. He then tossed her a present, and when she looked at him again, he beckoned her to open it.

_With unashamed glee, she tore open the package, revealing its treasure,_

_Only to gasp as she beheld her prize; a globe of Remnant, made of silver._

“It’s…beautiful…” she told him, and Santa Claus smiled warmly.

“Hohoho!” he called out as his sleigh took off into the night.

* * *

 

“And that’s what happened to me last night,” Ruby finished her tale, a smug smile on her face. Her friends, however, each sported varying looks, ranging from Nora’s and Jaune’s looks of unabashed wonder to Weiss’ stare of disbelief.

“So, you’re telling us that, last night, you met Santa Claus.”

“Yep.”

“Who is real.”

“As real as you or me.”

“And you helped him…save Christmas.”

“And he gave me this neat globe!” she said as she held her gift aloft for all to see.

“…Seems legit,” Yang stated with finality, causing her sister to smile brightly. Then, the smile disappeared as her thoughts began to wander.

“You know,” she wondered aloud, “I wonder where he went to last? It sounded dangerous.”

“Eh, I’m sure he’s fine,” Yang shrugged her sister’s worries off. “Where’s the worst place he can go?”

* * *

 

_Apokolips_

“You’ve been a naughty boy again, Darkseid,” Santa Claus proclaimed, the ruins of Darkseid’s army strewn before him.

“Santa Claus, my mortal enemy,” the God of Tyranny declared as he rose out of his throne, “You’ve defeated my defenses yet again. I’ll have to upgrade them for you next year.”

“That’s what you always say,” Santa replied as he threw his bag to the side.

“Quite,” Darkseid replied as his eyes glowed red. Then, Santa roared and flexed, his red suit exploding to reveal the chiseled body beneath, complete with a twelve-pack and arm muscles the size of his head, and the two combatants charged forth at one another.

Their battle raged for hours, buildings and monuments crushed, only for a wounded Santa Claus to emerge victorious once more. He took off back to his home, leaving behind a broken New God, a lump of coal lying next to his head.

“No…” Darkseid groaned as he gazed upon the coal, forcing him to feel what he hates most: regret. He turned his hateful gaze towards the man who caused him to feel regret once more, and he said those famous words:

“Merry Christmas to all! And to all a good night!”

[~][~]


	10. The Teen Titans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the aftermath of the events on Themyscira, RWBY and JNPR head to Jump City and meet a group of heroes their age calling themselves the Titans.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 8: The Teen Titans **

* * *

 

RWBY and JNPR were already awake by the time dawn rose over Themyscira. They hadn’t gotten much sleep that night, their thoughts running wild over just who the traitor was. The Amazons themselves had it worse. The idea that one of their sisters would betray them so thoroughly, one who would cause the deaths of dozens of Amazons willingly, was unthinkable until now. There was talk of Hippolyta closing the border entirely and recalling every Amazon from overseas. Themsycira would completely isolate themselves until they found the traitor.

An overreaction, perhaps, but not one they couldn’t understand. At the very least Donna and Diana were exempt from the recall.

“I’m sorry things have come to this,” Diana declared as she escorted the teams and Donna to the air pad.

“It’s okay, Diana,” Weiss said, “I’m just sorry that we couldn’t do more.”

“Don’t blame yourselves for this, please. If anything, this is my fault.” Diana sighed and shook her head. “I was so focused on Ares that I never even considered…”

“Diana, really. It wasn’t your fault this happened,” Ruby interrupted the Amazon, smiling softly. Her expression then turned serious, and the Huntress took a glance at the city below them. “Any idea who could have done it?”

“Not one,” Diana revealed, scowling and clenching her fist, “and I’m not leaving my home until I find out who is.”

“Same here, once I drop you all off in Jump City,” Donna spoke up. “You guys will love it. Hopefully, things will be calmer over there.”

“Probably won’t, let’s be honest,” Nora declared, causing the others to look at her with arched eyebrows. “What? I’m just saying. So far, the pattern seems to be ‘ooh, everything’s calm, let’s have a good time,’ then whammo! We got a fight on our hands.”

“…She isn’t wrong. Trouble does seem to follow us lately,” Ren pointed out after a beat. The others thought it over, then sighed and shrugged in agreement.

“…Hopefully, if that does happen, it won’t be for a while,” Diana acquiesced. She then smiled and patted Ruby’s shoulder. “Stay safe, little ones. “

“We will,” Yang smiled and gave the Wonder Woman a thumbs up. Diana smiled back, only for Ruby to suddenly hug her tightly. Diana chuckled to herself, then hugged the young girl again. Everyone watched silently, content to merely sit back and wait before the sound of a jet turbine starting up attracted their attention.

“Well, that’s our cue. We’ll see you later, Diana,” Ruby awkwardly chuckled as she joined the others. As the ramp to the jet’s interior descended, the huntsmen and huntresses waved one final time to the Wonder Woman, who calmly waved back even after the ramp closed. The only sign of their presence was the sound of the jet turbine, its whine increasing as a jet of fire erupted behind it. The plane took off into the clear blue sky, and Diana only stopped waving once the sound faded into the distance.

Then, with a frown stretched across her face, she turned back to the city. She did not know who exactly betrayed them, but when she did, there was going to be hell to pay.

* * *

 

“So, Donna,” Yang asked from the co-pilot seat, “tell us about these Titans you’re a part of.”

“Gladly,” Wonder Girl replied, turning on the autopilot and rotating her chair to face the others. As she did, she pressed a button on the center console, causing a holographic image to appear in the center of the vehicle.

“Is that a giant T?” Jaune immediately pointed out. Sure enough, there was indeed a giant T-shaped building. In front of it sat a group of costumed heroes, most appearing to be around their age. They recognized Nightwing and Donna immediately, but the others’ identities eluded them.

“That ‘giant T,’” Donna answered with a chuckle, “is Titans Tower. It was made about a year into our operation. Cyborg designed it, and it’s filled with the same technology that makes up the Watchtower. A little better in some areas, given how much Cy works on it.”

“I take it that this is him right here?” Yang said as she pointed to the man in question. He was much taller than the others, but it wasn’t his size that stood out to them. It was the fact that the only bit of flesh they could see was the right side of his face. Everything else was a shiny, metallic grey. The question as to how Cyborg got to his current state was on everyone’s mind, but they wisely pushed that question to the side.

“Yes, actually, although he prefers Victor while in the tower,” Donna answered as she brought the figure closer.

“Wait, Victor? Is that his…?” Ruby started, surprised that Donna would reveal her friend’s secret identity, but Donna waved her off.

“Don’t worry. I already got permission from everyone. Just don’t go blabbering it on the internet, and we’ll be fine.” Donna smiled then straightened herself. “Anyway, we formed a few years ago in the aftermath of the Imperium Invasion. Each of us came to Jump City for our own reasons. Dick, or Nightwing as you know him, was trying to strike out on his own after the White Martians destroyed Blüdhaven. M’gann was trying to find herself after betraying the rest of her species, Garfield coming with her to try and control his new powers. Victor left his father in Metropolis, the accident that turned him into what he is destroying what was left of their relationship, while Raven was fleeing her father.”

‘ _I can relate to that_ ,’ Weiss thought as Donna continued to speak, the heiress noticing how Ruby stole a glance at her. Despite herself, a pang of unease rippled through Weiss’ body as she thought about what had happened to her family. Even if Weiss didn't have the best relationship with her father, mother, or brother, they were still her family. She could only hope that they weren’t suffering.

“I was trying to follow in Diana’s footsteps, seeking to go out into Man’s World and be a hero.” Donna awkwardly laughed and rubbed the back of her head. “My first few attempts were…disastrous. I had no idea what I was doing, and,” Donna paused and winced at the memories, “a lot of things got broken. Still, I eventually found myself in Jump City, where Raven sought us all out and brought us together.”

“What about her?” Jaune asked, pointing to the joyous girl hugging Nightwing tightly. Her eyes were completely green, her hair was a shade of fiery red, and the purple costume she was wearing left much of her orange skin exposed.

“That is Koriand’r, otherwise known as Starfire. She arrived in Jump City by coincidence. Her sister, Komand’r or Blackfire, had sold Kori into slavery to secure the throne to Tamaran. Kori escaped over Earth, and the Titans’ first mission was securing her freedom.” Donna laughed. “Poor Dick fell at first sight, and I can honestly say that she has been a bright sun in our lives ever since.”

“She looks like it,” Blake noted with a warm smile, then perked up as a thought came to her. “Wait, Koriand’r? Wasn’t she the person who the League almost had come up to help with translating our language into English?”

“Yes, actually, and while Starfire was more than happy to help, we decided that her method would have only made things worse.”

“What do you mean?” Ruby asked while cocking her head, and Donna sheepishly blushed and rubbed the back of her head.

“Well…why don’t you ask her when you get there? She knows more about it than I do.”

Ruby and the others nodded, Weiss seeing how the subject appeared to be embarrassing to the Amazon. She couldn’t help but wonder precisely what method this Starfire would use that would cause such a response but decided to ask the Tamaranean herself.

“In any case, we’ve been together as a team ever since. We operated out of a home Dick had in the city for a while, until the city rewarded us for our services with Titans Tower. There have been other members come and gone over the years, several of whom have graduated to the Justice League. So, you really can say that we are a junior League. Just don’t tell Dick that, he still gets defensive about it.”

Everyone nodded and chuckled. The former students could see how such a description might rile someone up. The Amazon then began to regale the group about some of her friends’ exploits over the years. Their encounters with supervillains, ranging from the admittedly humorous to outright gods. Upon learning of Trigon, Weiss immediately knew that Raven had it much, much worse than she did. It seemed that the universe just loved showing her people who made her father look like a saint in comparison.

This talk continued for hours, the flight from Themyscira to Jump City ironically taking longer than the one they had to get to Themyscira in the first place. It wasn’t an unpleasant experience, however, with the jet itself ensuring that their flight was as smooth as possible. For much of it, they traveled over the vast Atlantic Ocean, occasionally passing over cargo ships and cruise liners, until they eventually hit dry land. They moved east to west over the continental United States, their destination along its western coast. The landscape beneath them varied wildly, turning from sprawling cities to vast forests and farmland. Donna took the time to point out the names of the towns as they passed over them, explicitly singling out the great city of Metropolis as a highlight.

“Everyone,” Donna announced over the intercom, “welcome to Jump City.”

As soon as the Wonder Girl announced this, RWBY and JNPR witnessed the sight of a vast city along a bay. Their destination could not be more evident as they flew towards a small island in the bay’s center, connected to the mainland by a long bridge. Titans Tower sat on it, staring out over the city in constant vigilance, and as they descended onto a helipad, they saw a group of costumed heroes already waiting for them, waving wildly as the Invisible Jet finally landed.

“Looks like Star and Cy are already waiting for us,” Donna noted as she opened the front entryway of the plane. The others nodded, and with their bags already in their hands stepped out onto the pad below.

“Hello, new friends!” Starfire exclaimed as she flew towards them, a great smile emblazoned across her face. Ruby hardly had the chance to smile and wave back before the Tamaranean scooped her up, hugged the young huntress tightly and spun her around. “Ooh, we are so happy to meet you all!”

“Yo, Star! Put her down; she’s turning green!” Cyborg shouted as he walked towards them. Starfire looked at her friend, blinked, then looked at Ruby to see that her head was spinning.

“Sorry!” Starfire gently placed Ruby on the ground, who wobbled in place for a moment as she collected her bearings.

“Uggh…” Ruby groaned as Yang ran down and grabbed her shoulder. “I’m o… I’m okay…”

For a moment Yang looked at her sister in concern, but when Ruby shook her head and flashed a thumbs up, Yang smiled and patted Ruby’s shoulder. She then turned her attention towards the Teen Titans, specifically at the orange-skinned girl in front of her.

“So, you must be Starfire. Name’s Yang,” she announced herself and extended her arm. Seeing this, Starfire nodded and promptly hugged Yang tightly, who laughed and hugged her back. “You’re a hugger.”

“Oh, yes! My people have always been free with their emotions, and meeting new friends always makes me happy!” Starfire said as she released Yang and stepped back slightly. She then looked towards the others and nodded. “Come, let us head inside. Friend Beast Boy has been most excited about your arrival and has been preparing all morning.”

* * *

 

“Welcome, dudes and dudettes! Food is already on the table, so dig right in! Hope you like vegan. If not, Cyborg made a bunch of burgers on the counter,” a green-skinned boy greeted RWBY and JNPR from behind the kitchen counter, steaming food sitting out in plates around him. Like the picture portrayed, he was a young boy around their age, and one look effortlessly showcased just how joyous and full of life he was. If he cared at all about his green-skin, he didn’t show it. Sitting across from him were two women, one wearing a blue hooded cloak that covered her pale skin, while the other reminded them of J’onn J’onzz. Remembering what Donna had told them on the plane, they inferred that these two were Raven Roth and M’gann M’orzz.

“Everyone, meet my friend, Beast Boy,” Starfire announced, to which Beast Boy waved her off.

“Please, only my adoring fans call me Beast Boy,” he chuckled as he walked over to the group, his arm outstretched. “Call me Garfield.”

“Hello, Garfield,” Nora enthusiastically returned his greeting while shaking his hand. Koriand’r laughed at this then walked over to the two women on the booth.

“This is M’gann and Raven.” At Starfire’s declaration, the green-skinned redhead stood up and smiled, her crossed hands betraying her nervousness, while Raven continued to sit.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you all,” M’gann said with a smile. Ruby smiled back and nodded, idly noting just how emotive the Martian girl was. For all the respect Ruby held towards the Martian Manhunter, he was disconcertingly stoic, yet this girl seemed to be much better at expressing herself.

“Hello,” Raven dryly greeted while staring at everyone. In an instant, Yang was reminded of when they first met Blake, something the cat Faunus picked up on as well. Ruby smiled at her all the same, then looked around the room.

“Hey, where’s Nightwing?” she asked, and Starfire sighed.

“Still in Gotham and helping the Batman, sadly. He won’t be back for some time,” she revealed. The rest of the Titans frowned and nodded, their concern for their leader evident on all their faces. Starfire then forced herself to perk up and smiled. “But he did send you all his regards, and he is sorry he couldn’t be here himself.”

“Don’t worry, we understand,” Jaune said. “How is Gotham doing, by the way?”

“Better, but much of the city is still on lockdown,” Cyborg declared while sitting down on a large sofa. “There was a breakout in Blackgate during the chaos, so Nightwing and everyone are trying to round them up.”

“We’d have gone with him, but Bats was all ‘No, this is my city. You aren’t allowed here,’” Beast Boy interjected in a mockingly deep growl.

“Yeah, we noticed that,” Yang agreed and nodded. “I swear, it’s like he has a stick up his—”

“Yang,” Ruby cut her off.

“What? You know it’s true.” If Yang was at all ashamed at her insinuation, she wasn’t showing it. Everyone stared at her silently, then laughed and conceded to her point. Beast Boy then slapped his hands together and walked towards the main hallway, beckoning everyone to join him.

“Well, how about we show you guys the place after we eat?” he asked, and the group nodded quickly. To Garfield’s mild disappointment, only Blake and Ren went for the vegan option, if only out of politeness. Everyone else gladly grabbed a meaty burger and began to devour them.

“Victor, these are _so_ good!” Yang exclaimed through an open mouth, barbeque sauce dripping down the corner of her mouth.

“Yang, must you eat like a brute?” Weiss chastised as she ate her burger with a knife and fork.

“Says the princess eating a burger with a knife and fork.”

“It’s sanitary.”

“It’s _boring,_ ” Yang countered, causing the others to laugh. Ren then turned towards Garfield, nibbling on a chunk of tofu as he did.

“Garfield, I must ask,” he began, catching the Beast Boy’s attention, “Donna told us that you can turn into any animal on the planet.”

“Yep,” Garfield proudly declared, a smile emblazoned on his face and thrusting a thumb back to his chest.

“Is that why you’re a vegan?” Ren asked, and Garfield, his mouth full, responded with a clap.

“Two for two!” he announced after swallowing his food, “But yeah, that’s the reason why. I don’t mind if you guys eat meat, but to me, given how I can turn _into_ those animals—”

“It would be like cannibalism,” Blake finished, and Garfield nodded. “How did you get your powers, anyway?”

“Well, for starters, I got a rare disease called Sakutia. Would have killed me had I not had regular blood transfusions, but my mother was able to keep me supplied.” Garfield smiled warmly at the memory, only for his expression to darken as bad memories came back. M’gann noticed this and sat next to him, a concerned frown on her face while Blake and Ren looked alarmed. They worried they had inadvertently crossed a line.

“Hey, are you alright?” the Martian asked, and Garfield nodded his head after a moment.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just…” He paused, and suddenly Ren knew exactly what had happened.

“Garfield, I am so—”

“It’s fine,” Beast Boy interjected, then took a deep breath and continued, “My mother was a geneticist in Qurac. We lived on an animal reservation there, and I would play with the animals every day. One day, an animal came in. It was violent and was attacking everything in sight. I tried to stop it, only for it to bite me. A warden shot it before it could do anything else.”

“That’s how you got Sakutia,” Ren guessed, and Garfield nodded.

“Yeah. I was…eight, at the time. They thought I only had six months to live. Luckily for me, my mother and I took regular samples of our blood, and equipment from S.T.A.R. Labs allowed her to synthesize more. She developed a treatment for Sakutia involving regular blood transfusions, which kept me alive.” Garfield paused for a moment and looked at Blake and Ren’s faces. They didn’t speak, but their message was loud and clear. If he didn’t want to continue, he didn’t have to.

M’gann patted his back reassuringly, and so Beast Boy released a deep sigh and pressed on. “This lasted for about five years. At first, the blood transfusions had to be done once a month. Then, it turned into twice a month, then once every week. By the time I met M’gann after the Imperium Invasion, it had to be done daily.”

“I came across them by chance, actually,” M’gann spoke up. “I was trying to understand the world I was now home to, learn its people and cultures. Admittedly, Qurac was not my first choice, and I don’t want to go there ever again, but I’m glad I went.”

“So am I, sis,” Garfield smiled up at her, his expression finally lightening back up. “M’gann and I got along instantly, and when she learned about my condition, she tried to help however she could.”

“What happened?” Blake politely asked, seeing where events were going. When M’gann and Gar’s expressions’ darkened, she knew she was right.

“Qurac was never the most peaceful country in the world, but the Imperium Invasion toppled whatever unity the country managed to keep after Darkseid’s invasion a few years prior,” Garfield explained. By now, everyone was paying attention, silently giving his story the attention it deserved. “As it turned out, several of the government’s leaders were Imperium spies, and the subsequent purge by the king got innocents and political enemies caught in the crossfire. When he tried to kill one of his top generals, a civil war ensued. At first, my mother and I thought we could sit it out, but we were wrong.”

“During my stay there, a group of rebels attacked the royal compound that oversaw the preserve,” M’gann began, everyone’s attention shifting to her, “I tried to stop the fighting, but when the rebels saw me, they merely tried to kill us. I did everything I could to keep Garfield and his mother safe, but during the attack most of his blood stores were destroyed. Had we stayed, he would have certainly died, and so I tried to get them out myself.”

“Couldn’t you have gotten the Watchtower to pick you guys up?” Jaune asked, only for M’gann to shake her head.

“The Watchtower didn’t have the teleporter yet, and it was too dangerous to fly a Javelin down to pick him up, so we had to walk. We had enough blood to get to the border and then to the Watchtower for treatment, but the next day, when the time for the transfusion came…the treatment didn’t work. His body began to shut down, so I used the only thing I could think of to save his life: I gave him my blood.”

“You gave him your blood?” Yang asked with a cocked head, trying to wrap her head around how an alien and thirteen-year-old boy could possibly share blood. Seeing this, M’gann giggled and began to explain.

“My species was capable of shapeshifting into anything we desired, and Uncle J’onn helped me refine my control to specific parts of my body,” she said, and Nora snapped her fingers.

“So you changed your blood-type to match his!” she exclaimed, and Garfield smiled and nodded.

“Yes, exactly,” M’gann nodded. “The treatment worked, and we were able to make it out of the war-torn country. As we got closer to the border, however, Garfield…began to change.”

“She means I turned green right before her eyes,” he interjected. “Also, the Sakutia was completely gone. I was cured. My mother was completely over the moon.”

“When did you find out you could turn into animals?” Jaune asked the obvious question, and Garfield frowned.

“…When we got to the border,” he began, his fist tightly clenched, “we were intercepted by a royal patrol. They accused us of being rebels, and refused to let us leave. My mother argued with them, but they refused to listen. Then she slapped one of them, and…they shot her.”

The huntsmen and huntresses’ eyes widened at this, and an angry scowl flashed across Garfield’s face.

“Got so angry, I just…lost control. I turned into a tiger and mauled both of them, and…that was it. I’ve been with M’gann ever since. She was the only family I had left.” Garfield calmed himself and took a deep breath, then looked back up at the concerned looks of his friends and smiled faintly.

“…I lost both of my parents when I was eight,” Ren spoke softly, Nora gently placing her hand on his, “I had lived in the city of Kuroyuri, everything was peaceful, until an Elder Grimm attacked. Killed my parents and everyone I knew right before my eyes. Nora and I were the only survivors. So, Garfield, believe me when I say that you have my deepest sympathies for what has befallen you. If you ever want to talk,” Ren reached out and placed his hand on the Beast Boy’s shoulder, who smiled in gratitude, “I’m here.”

“We all are,” Jaune emphasized, and RWBY and JNPR all smiled. M’gann and the other Titans all smiled at the outpouring of support, only for Garfield to suddenly and out of nowhere burb loudly.

“Oh, Gar, geez!” Victor and the others recoiled, only for Beast Boy to laugh hysterically.

* * *

 

After an hour, once everyone had finished swapping stories and telling jokes, the mood had lightened considerably. Garfield had rebounded completely from earlier and was back to his normal, cheerful self, and as soon as the last plate was cleaned he bounded over to the main hall.

“Come on, guys. Let me give you a tour of the place. We’ve got everything in here,” he called out excitedly.

RWBY and JNPR smiled and followed after him, the rest of the Titans following after them and leaving M’gann and Donna behind. The two girls watched after them, Garfield excitedly detailing everything the Tower had to offer with Victor while Raven kept them from going too overboard.

“They’re going to be just fine here,” M’gann said as the group rounded a corner, granting the Martian and Amazon privacy. She then frowned and turned to face Donna. “Are you sure you can’t stay? I thought your mother didn’t force you to stay in Themyscira?”

“She didn’t,” Donna nodded, “but I’m still going back. As much as I love being with all of you here, my people need me.”

“I… I understand.” M’gann sighed and hugged the Amazon tightly. “I’m sorry you have to go so soon.”

“Me, too.” Donna hugged her back then let go. “I should…probably say goodbye to everyone then get on out of here.”

“Yeah.” M’gann nodded then smiled. “Come on, let’s go join the others.”

* * *

 

“And this,” Cyborg declared as he opened a sliding metal door, revealing a large open room with weights and various other exercise equipment, “is the gym.”

“Nice,” Yang nodded as she and the rest of her team walked inside, team JNPR right behind them. She looked to the far wall and saw a large press-like machine, the top embedded into the ceiling. “How much does that weight-press go to?”

“As much as needed,” Cyborg answered. He then smiled and thrust his thumb towards his chest. “My current record’s twenty tons. You?”

“Nice,” Yang smiled and nodded, “Mine’s the same, without the use of my Semblance.”

“Damage Absorption, right?” he asked, to which Yang nodded. “Can see how that can be useful, especially in our line of work.”

“What about you, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Not at all,” Cyborg replied. “As you can see, most of my body is cybernetic, both human and Apokoliptic. There’s a lot of things I can do.” He then smirked and held up his right arm, which suddenly shifted into a cannon.

“That is so cool!” Ruby exclaimed as she appeared next to the pair in a burst of rose petals, “What is it? What is it?”

Cyborg laughed and allowed Ruby to inspect it more closely. “This baby right here is a sonic cannon. It fires—”

“Compressed sound waves! Ooh, there’s so much you can do with that! You can strike someone on the inside, dial it up and down to control just how hard you hit, you can—”

“Yep, you set her off,” Yang noted to a surprised Cyborg and patted him on the shoulder. “Just let it run its course. There’s nothing you can do to stop it.”

“Heh, I can see that,” he chuckled. “Should I mention it can turn into a plasma cannon?”

“IT CAN DO THAT, TOO?!” Ruby shouted, stars in her eyes as she looked over Cyborg expectantly. Victor laughed and took back his arm, turning it back into its regular configuration.

“What about you, Garfield? Care to show us what you can do?” Blake asked while she watched her leader excitedly gush about Victor’s weapon systems. Garfield smirked and cracked his fingers, then walked forward.

“Watch, and be amazed,” he announced to her and the other huntsmen. He bounced around a few times on the balls of his feet, and then his body began to shift before their very eyes. It happened so fast that he appeared to turn into a green blob for a split second, and when he came out of it, Garfield was now a green tiger.

“Holy…” Blake muttered as the tiger roared triumphantly. Donna had described Beast Boy’s ability to turn into animals while on the plane, but seeing it happen in person was much different than having it described to her second-hand. Garfield then turned back to normal, inexplicably wearing his black and purple jumpsuit from before the transformation. He then began to shift rapidly, turning into a variety of bears, cats, wolves, lizards, insects, and much more.

“Holy crap, when Donna said you could turn into any animal, she wasn’t kidding,” Jaune gasped, then took a step back as Garfield transformed one last time. This transformation was much larger, its enormous head nearly reaching the ceiling and its long, thick tail curling around it. Its tiny arms dangled near uselessly on its torso, and as Garfield roared, everyone had to cover their ears lest they go deaf.

“Garfield!” Raven suddenly shouted, “Will you knock that off!”

At her command, Beast Boy suddenly transformed back to normal, a sheepish smile on his face while he rubbed the back of his head. “Sorry, RaeRae. Got a little carried away.”

“Honestly, the last thing any of us need is to go deaf because you decided to show off,” she chastised, and at once the Remnantians got the gist of how their relationship worked. Blake was reminded of Sun’s irreverent antics, the memories bringing a smile to her face. That smile soon disappeared, replaced by a frown and drooped ears. Strangely enough, Raven seemed to pick up on this immediately, and the grey-skinned girl walked over to her.

“You alright?” she asked.

“I…,” Blake sighed and grasped her wrist, “Just…remembering someone I knew. He was a good friend and seeing you and Garfield interact reminded me of him. We got separated during the fighting, and I don’t know what happened to him.”

Raven looked at the Faunus in sympathy and nodded. “Don’t worry; I’m sure he’s fine. If he’s anything like Gar, he’ll be so stubborn and stupid that nothing would put him down for long.”

“Hey, I heard that!” Beast Boy indignantly shouted.

“You were supposed to,” she replied sarcastically, a joking look in her eyes. Blake couldn’t help but laugh at the blunt exchange. It was apparent that, despite the ribbing, the two cared for each other deeply.

“So, Raven,” Ren politely asked, “what are your powers, exactly? Donna described you as an empath and magic user.”

“Yes, that’s pretty much it,” the half-demon answered. “My magic came from my father, the demon Trigon, and I learned how to control it in Azarath. I won’t get into the specifics right now. It would take way too long to go over everything I can do with magic.”

“Trust us, she ain’t lying,” Cyborg interjected, his words backed up by Kori’s and Garfield’s nods. Everyone then turned to face Starfire, who perked up and smiled.

“All Tamaraneans can absorb ultraviolet radiation, and at first I could only use it to fly. But, when my sister betrayed me,” for a brief moment, she frowned then perked herself back up again, not wanting a repeat of Garfield’s emotional origin story, “I gained the ability to convert that energy into what I call ‘starbolts.’”

“Huh, cool,” Yang replied. She knew that Starfire was playing down what happened to her, and the huntress wasn’t willing to delve into that trauma. Before anyone could speak again, however, the doors to the gym opened and revealed M’gann and Donna.

“So, how is everyone getting along?” the Amazon asked.

“Everything’s great, Wonder Girl!” Garfield exclaimed, only to notice the forlorn expression on the Amazon’s face. Slowly, his mood died down and was replaced with exasperation. “Don’t tell me you’re leaving already?”

“But you just got here?” Kori pointed out, her sadness easily conveyed. Victor and Raven were able to keep their emotions in check better, but Ruby and the others could see that they too were upset.

“Sadly, yes. I can’t just leave my people when there’s a crisis on our hands. I’m sorry, but—” Starfire suddenly flew and embraced her tightly, cutting Donna off mid-sentence. After a moment of confusion, Donna smiled and hugged her back.

“Be safe. Please,” the Tamaranean princess begged, and Donna nodded.

“I will, don’t worry.” Donna released Starfire and stepped back before putting her hand on the alien’s shoulder. “I’ll be back before you know it.”

“…okay.” Starfire reluctantly nodded, and Donna turned her attention to the other members of her team.

“Stay safe, Wonder Girl,” Cyborg told her while patting her shoulder.  Beast Boy then strode up and hugged her, while Raven stayed back.

“We’ll see you later,” she said, her voice betraying a hint of sadness that her friend was leaving. Donna recognized it clearly and moved to hug the half-demon, only for Raven to hold up her hands and back up a step. “Yeah, that’s a no on the hugging.”

Donna chuckled. “Never change, Raven.” She then turned around and began walking away, the others following her to the front of the building and out to the helipad. Donna waved one last time as she ascended into the invisible jet, the others waving back before she finally took off. The Titans and Huntsmen didn’t stop waving until the sound of the plane eventually disappeared into the distance, at which point they sighed and looked at each other.

“Well, let’s head on back inside, guys. Today’s an off day for all of us, so let’s enjoy it while we can,” Cyborg pointed out.

“I’m down with that,” Yang agreed with him as she and the others followed him back inside. In the back of her mind, she wondered just how their stay with the Titans would go.

* * *

 

“COME ON! HIT HIM!” Victor shouted at the screen, watching the Gotham University Nighthawks’ defense try and fail to tackle the Metropolis University Bulldogs’ running back.  When the runner finally got tackled fifteen yards from the touchdown, Victor let out a sigh of relief while a smiling Yang chuckled and shook her head.

“You know, this ‘football’ reminds me of a sport back home,” Yang noted as she watched the two teams prepare for the next play.

“Really? Which one?” he asked, his eyes still glued to the screen.

“A sport called griffball. Kind of like football, only the ball was a small bomb, and the players hit each other with hammers and swords.”

“… That sounds awesome,” Garfield got out, to which Yang smiled and nodded.

“I still think both of those sports are barbaric,” Weiss chastised from the kitchen table with Blake and Raven, glancing at the TV with a disdainful look. “It’s just grown men hitting each other for a stupid ball.”

“Yeah, so?” Ruby pointed out from the couch, Jaune, Yang, and Nora all looking at her expectantly. Rather than reply, the heiress sighed and shook her head.

“Honestly, it’s like I’m surrounded by savages, sometimes,” she sighed, then turned her attention back towards Raven. Questions flowed in the girl’s mind, something the half-demon seemed to pick up on as she turned her attention towards Weiss.

“Something you want?” she asked, and Weiss quickly shook her head.

“No, nothing. Just… Wanted to say that, for what it’s worth…”

“That you also had an evil, controlling father, so you know what it’s like?” Raven guessed, surprising the heiress. Seeing this, Raven sighed and closed her book. “Your emotions are all over the place, so it wasn’t hard to figure out why. I’d say that you have no idea, but I also know you are aware of that.”

“ … You’re a very blunt person, aren’t you?” Blake pointed out, only for Raven to give her a lidded stare, then the Faunus sighed. “Moving on, how come you aren’t joining the others?”

Punctuating Blake’s question, the TV watchers roared enthusiastically as the Nighthawks stopped a touchdown attempt. Raven raised an eyebrow at the sight then turned back towards Blake.

“I’m half-demon,” she explained, “If I get too emotional, I run the risk of losing control completely and turning into what my father wants. I’d become a vessel for his will, opening Earth up to him. I _cannot_ let that happen.”

“That must be difficult,” Weiss said with complete sympathy, and Raven closed her eyes and nodded.

“It is, sometimes,” she admitted, then looked over the rest of her team cheering on as a Nighthawks lineman intercepted the ball, then smiled. “But, being here, with my friends… It makes it easier.”

“Even Garfield?” Blake asked with a smirk, and Raven chuckled.

“Oh, he makes it worse.”

“You know you love me, Raven,” Garfield pointed out with a cheerful laugh.

“Keep telling yourself that. Maybe one day, it’ll come true.”

“I heard a maybe in there!” he joked, causing the others to laugh. Beast Boy smiled at this, happy to have brought smiles to his friends' faces, then leaned forward to face all of the Remnantians. “So, I have a question for all of you.”

“Sure, shoot,” Yang replied as she refilled her cup of soda, Ruby munching on a bowl of chips next to her.

Garfield nodded, then narrowed his eyes conspiratorially. “Have you all decided yet?”

RWBY and JNPR stared blankly at Garfield, not quite understanding what he was implying.

“Decided what?” Blake finally asked, making the green boy groan.

“Oh, come on! You mean to tell me that you’re training with the freaking Justice League, trying to become superheroes for the past, what, month now, and you haven’t even decided your superhero name? That’s like, Superhero 101.”

“Oh, that’s what you meant!” Ruby exclaimed as she wiped some crumbs from the corner of her mouth. She then smiled excitedly and pointed between herself and a smiling Jaune. “Jaune and I have been thinking of a few.”

“I still think it’s a childish exercise,” Weiss proclaimed, only for Ruby to laugh at her expected response.

Yang chuckled then turned to face Garfield. She hummed to herself, tapping her chin, only to shrug.

“Haven’t put much thought to it, really,” she admitted. Garfield gasped in mock shock, then shook his head.

“Et tu, Yang? What about the rest of you?” He looked around the room, locking eyes with each of the other superheroes-in-training, and they all either shrugged or shook their head. His eyes then narrowed, and he sprung to his feet.

“Well, this cannot stand!” he shouted, then dramatically pointed at Raven. “Rae, whiteboard!”

Raven stared at him then rolled her eyes. “Fine…,” she said as she raised her hand, a black aura enveloping the appendage. Next to Garfield a black rectangle appeared on the wall, only to disappear and revealed a whiteboard in its place.

“…Huh, so that’s what magic looks like…” Pyrrha commented, remembering their previous, more subtle interactions with magic. An embarrassed blush briefly came to her cheeks as she glanced at her partner, but she shook her head as Ruby joined Garfield next to the board.

“Listen up!” Garfield barked, causing the more serious members of the group to roll their eyes while the others merely chuckled and did as instructed. When Garfield began marching back and forth in front of the whiteboard, the snickers increased, and judging by the look on Garfield’s face, the audience reaction was intended.

“Being a superhero requires many things out of you! It requires dedication, it requires selflessness, it requires sacrifice, it may require you to wear silly costumes that pull in uncomfortable places!” The audience laughed once more at this declaration, but Garfield continued. “But one thing that is essential is a name! A name that turns you from a man, or woman, into a symbol! A superhero name.”

“Ooh,” Nora gasped dramatically, and Ruby took the opportunity to step forward. The Titans all looked at Garfield silently, allowing him to continue, while Raven just stared flatly.

“Superhero names have to be more than just cool or inspiring! They have to be indicative of who we are and what we do!  Superman is a man who can do almost anything, bringing hope wherever he goes. Batman operates at night, bringing fear to the criminals he fights while dressed as a bat. Wonder Woman brings wonder and love to the world as she fights to make the world a better place!” the young huntress espoused.

“And then you have someone like Green Arrow, who wears green and uses a bow, or Raven, who just goes by her first name,” Yang pointed out, seeing where her sister was going but wanting to cut it short. For her part, Raven looked appreciative of being acknowledged. Ruby blushed, embarrassed that she was beginning to ramble, before straightening herself once more.

“Anyway,” she started up again and took up a black marker. She began to write on the board as she continued to talk, “Jaune and I have already begun to think about what our names should be. We believe that all of us especially need superhero names to protect ourselves from people like Luthor and Waller. At the same time, our names need to be symbols of who we are and where we came from. They also need to be colorful, of course.”

“Makes sense,” Ren admitted while thinking over his possibilities. “Color is an important part of our culture,” he added for the benefit of their hosts.

“Exactly! That is perfect, and you should use it!” Beast Boy declared with an excited point. He then turned towards Ruby, who smiled then turned her attention to the others. Her friends looked at her expectantly, with Weiss sighing and rubbing the bridge of her nose.

“…Well, what names did you two come up with?” Blake asked when none of the others volunteered to bite the bullet.

“Oh, right. Well, for me… I like Red Reaper,” she admitted, and the others all hummed as they thought it over.

“Ooh, I get it!” Starfire exclaimed. “It is because you wear red and use a scythe, correct?”

“Exactly!” Ruby proclaimed, then blushed and looked down at her feet, kicking them against each other. “… also I think it sounds cool…”

“It does share your name’s alliteration,” Weiss mused while holding her chin with a critical look in her eye. “But isn’t it a little too…simplistic?”

“We _just_ mentioned Green Arrow, Ice Queen, and we’ve already met a bunch of other heroes with obvious names like that,” Yang scoffed, quick to defend her little sister’s decision making. “It’s supposed to be like a brand name, something that’s easy for anyone to say and remember, not an obscure and fancy mouthful.”

“’Short, sweet, and rolls of the tongue.’ My mom’s advice is right, as usual,” Jaune agreed with an emphatic nod. “It sounds very cool, Ruby. I think the name suits you perfectly,” Jaune declared with finality, turning everyone’s attention towards himself. “Me, I like the name White Knight.”

“You look the part,” Garfield admitted, and Jaune smiled.

“Exactly!”

Blake chuckled at her friend's antics, then began to think about a name for herself. Like Weiss, she too believed that the practice was at its heart childish, but at the same time recognized its practicality and necessity. Like it or not, they needed to keep their identities secret if they wanted to operate on Earth successfully. She wracked her mind, trying to come up with a name for herself, only to sigh and shake her head.

“Having trouble there?” Victor asked, and she nodded. “Don’t let it get to you. Most heroes take a while to come up with their name. For a while, Garfield called himself ‘Changeling’ after deciding Beast Boy sounded too ‘immature’ and that since he was a man, he needed to change his name.”

“I was fifteen, Cy,”  Garfield pointed out, annoyance etched onto his face at how the others laughed at his attempted rebranding. It barely lasted a month before he changed it back, and Cyborg had never let him live it down.

“Just saying, man. Now, let's go back to you, Blake,” Victor changed the subject and redirected his attention towards her. “Let’s start with what you do as a fighter.”

“Well,” Blake paused as she thought about how she fought, from her weapons and tactics all the way to her Semblance, “I’m not a frontline fighter like Yang or Nora. Mostly I attack quickly then run away, letting my Shadow take the hit for me. So, maybe…” Blake paused in thought, getting stuck on a name.

“Hm, let’s see,” Starfire hummed and tapped her chin, “Maybe ‘Shadow Cat’?”

Blake stared flatly at the Tamaranean’s suggestion and shook her head.

“’Black Cat’?” Beast Boy suggested, and Blake once again shook her head.

“Black Faun—'”

“Yeah, can we not use my status as a cat Faunus as the basis of my superhero name, please?” a now thoroughly annoyed Blake asked. Sensing the sensitive subject matter, the Titans quickly acquiesced to her request, allowing her a moment to think. Her eyes briefly glanced down to her symbol, stitched onto her pant leg. It was the petals of a belladonna flower, a plant as beautiful as it was toxic, and she smiled as its other moniker came to her.

“Nightshade. I like the name Nightshade,” she declared, and her teammates smiled and nodded in approval.

“Nightshade… It suits you, Blake,” Yang smiled, and Blake smiled back. Seeing how everyone’s attention was now on the brawler, Yang smiled and leaned back onto the sofa, her arms crossed behind her head. “Well, it’s obvious that I’m the ball of sunshine in everyone’s life that will kick anyone’s butt if they try to hurt us, so if I had to come up with a name on the spot… I would have to say maybe Golden Dragon. Sounds badass, like me.”

The others laughed at her response, only to notice Weiss rolling her eyes. Seeing this, Yang smirked and leaned her head against her arm, turning her body to its side. “Well, Weiss. What about you?”

“I refuse to participate in this,” she insisted, and Yang’s smile grew.

“Well then, since you won’t choose your superhero name, I will bravely volunteer to do it for you,” Yang announced, and Weiss’ eyes widened.

“No, that is not—”

“Let’s see here… Ooh, there are so many options available for you, Weiss-Cream!” Yang started with a mirthful look on her face.

“I am warning you, Xiao Long!” Weiss threatened, but Yang ignored her.

“There’s Ice Queen, Special Snowflake,” the brawler began, causing the others to begin laughing at Weiss’ expense, “White Snow—”

“That is just my name translated,” Weiss pointed out, but Yang ignored her and continued to rattle off suggestions.

“How about Snow Angel, huh? Bring back some fond memories, right?” Yang joked, turning to face both Weiss and Jaune. The boy was torn between wanting to laugh at Yang’s jokes and defend the affectionate nickname he had given Weiss back when he still had a crush on her, but Weiss silenced them with a raised hand.

“Please, just…stop. I’ll come up with one later if you stop,” Weiss asked with an annoyed glare, and Yang laughed and waved her off.

“Just joking around, Weiss. Seriously, have some fun with this.” Yang then turned her attention towards Jaune’s team, but before she could say anything, Ren coughed into his fist.

“Nora and I have already been thinking about ours as well,” he revealed. “Nora thinks I should call myself Green Lotus.”

“Ooh, like Green Arrow, all the Green Lanterns, and Green Fire before she shortened it to Fire,” She pointed out, causing Ren to see a pattern.

“… On second thought, maybe Verdant or another color is a better word for it,” he consented, and the others nodded at his reasoning. Nora then thumped her chest proudly.

“I will be Pink Lightning!” she declared with her typical enthusiasm. She then half-whispered conspiratorially to the group at large, “It’s because I can absorb electricity.”

“We figured,” Jaune laughed, then turned to face Pyrrha. The humble girl jolted once she realized everyone was staring at her expectantly, all of them given sympathetic smiles.

“I…well…” she started, then after a moment shook her head. “I’m sorry, it’s just…”

Jaune realized immediately what his partner’s issue with coming up with a name for herself was. Out of all the people he knew, Pyrrha was by far the humblest. Coming up with a superhero name, one designed to draw attention to a manufactured persona and not her actual identity, probably hit too close to home. A quick glance to Ren and Nora told him they saw the exact same thing.

“Crimson Guardian,” he suddenly declared, staring straight into Pyrrha’s surprised eyes. “Crimson Guardian seems perfect in my eyes.”

Pyrrha stared back at her partner, then smiled. “I love it. Thank you, Jaune.”

“What made you think of it? M’gann asked, choosing against using her psychic powers to look into his mind and figure out why. Jaune smiled at the question then nodded.

“Well, her color makes the Crimson obvious. As for Guardian…that’s what she does. She always protects those who need it most, whether it’s from monsters or their own stupidity.” Pyrrha smiled brightly at Jaune’s words, only to retreat when a frown suddenly crossed his face, and the champion instantly knew why.

“You’re still mad I fought the Gorgon by myself, aren’t you?” she asked, and the rest of her team all stared blankly at her.

“Yep,” they all replied, causing Pyrrha to wither slightly from their gazes. They weren’t truly angry at her. Their feelings were borne out of concern for their teammate, and that night they had made it clear that losing her would have devastated all of them. Given how Pyrrha knew she would have died had Diana not made it to her in time, she felt their feelings were justified. Garfield, not wanting the situation to grow tense, coughed into his fist and attracted everyone’s attention.

“Well, now that we got that out of the way, who wants to play some games? Watch some movies?” he asked. The others smiled, Yang wickedly.

“Let’s see… Get a chance to prove my fighting game superiority to a new planet? You’re on, Beast Boy. What game are we playing?” she challenged, and Garfield smiled.

“Raven, if you please?” he asked, and the whiteboard was subsequently enveloped in black magic then disappeared with a slight pop. Beast Boy then turned around and jumped towards the large TV, fishing through some cabinets embedded into the wall. Several cases of video games were arranged neatly in alphabetical order, organized by genre, and Jaune couldn’t help but whistle at the impressive collection.

“Found it!” he declared as he pulled out a case. It showed the face of a yellow-clad masked ninja, his eyes a pale, ghostly white, and Cyborg smiled while cracking his fingers.

* * *

 

As the Titans and their guests continued to party for the rest of the night, Jump City slept soundly. The businesses closed, cars parked in their lots, and the moon shone brightly overhead. It was a peaceful scene.

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN THEY CANCELED IT?!” a shrill voice suddenly shouted from a rundown apartment. Computer monitors and electronics lined every wall, wires crisscrossing across a dirty floor that was covered in empty pizza boxes and takeout food. The apartment centered around an overweight man with long, messy red hair. His angered face was marked with pimples, and he was wearing a makeshift armor that appeared to be lifted from a variety of different sci-fi movies.

“HOW DARE THEY CANCEL MY FAVORITE SHOW! WHO CARES IF IT DIDN’T GET ENOUGH RATINGS?! THE NETWORK SCREWED IT UP!” he raged at his central monitor, his shouting turning into a low growl.

“Ooh, if they think they can get away with this, they are so wrong,” he declared as he reached into a nearby desk and pulled out a black remote. “And I, Control Freak, will be the one who—”

“Yo, Freak!” his neighbor shouted through the thin wall, banging on it with his fist, “Shut up in there! I’m trying to get some sleep!”

“Get some earplugs, Gary! I’m having a hard time right now!” Control Freak countered.

“I don’t care! Just nerd rage in the morning, godammit!”

[~][~]


	11. Sudden Shameless Multi-Cross Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Control Freak has a temper tantrum over his favorite show being cancelled in lieu of a kids oriented spin off, taking over Jump Studios and holding the studio head hostage until his demands of a final season realized, and both RWBY/JNPR and the Titans move to intercept.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 9: Sudden Shameless Multi-Cross Part 1 **

* * *

 

_Ruby was running down a cold, metal corridor, her clothes shredded and Aura shattered. Crescent Rose had long been left behind, leaving her defenseless. Her heart was beating a mile a minute, beads of sweat pouring down her forehead and leaving her hair a wet, matted mess._

_“No, no, no, no,” she mumbled as Ruby continued to run, passing by several pods along the way. Each one was clear, easily showing the contents inside. Ruby stole a glance at them, and she quickly wished that she didn’t. Each one, contained within a yellow stasis field, was a person. At first, she didn’t recognize the people inside, but she could see they were from all walks of life. She passed human, Faunus, Remnantian, Thanagarian, Tamaranean, and many more she didn’t even hope to recognize._

_Ruby didn’t cease her flight at any of them. Her legs burned, but blind panic kept her going, only to come to a slowed, horrified stop once she passed a door._

_“Oh, Gods…” she gasped as she looked upon the wall before her. The entire wall, stretching upwards far beyond what she could see, was row after row of stasis pods, each one filled with someone she knew. She saw Sun, floating next to his team with tubes poking out of him in every direction, his golden tail shaved barren and shriveled. She saw her team, broken and defeated and with robotic drones probing each one of them and taking bits of flesh, hair, and bone. She saw JNPR in the same condition._

_Next to them, she saw the entirety of the Justice League, each being experimented upon and probed as though their existence meant nothing. For a brief moment she saw Superman straining, trying to break free from his bonds, only for a shard of kryptonite to be stabbed into his shoulder, and he stilled._

_"Penny…" Ruby wept when she finally saw the centerpiece of this horrible display. The gynoid was embedded into the wall, her body cut open and her internal mechanisms displayed for all to see. Her legs were nowhere to be seen, and half of her face was missing, showing only a metallic skull._

_“I see you’ve found them,” a toneless voice announced, causing Ruby’s body to chill. Slowly, she turned towards a dark corner of the room, only to see two bright purple eyes staring at her. The figure slowly began to walk forward, each step sounding with a loud, metallic clang. After what seemed like an eternity, Brainiac emerged from the shadows and stared emotionlessly at Ruby’s trembling form._

_He studied her for a moment then turned to gaze upon the wall, “They put up a strenuous fight, but in the end it was futile. As it always is.”_

_As Brainiac said this, a wall next to him slid open and revealed hundreds of glass spheres, each containing cities. She saw Moscow, Tokyo, Gotham City, Metropolis, and many, many more. Next to them, she saw the cities of Remnant, only for them to be burned away and replaced with yet another city from Earth. The sight horrified her, but she couldn’t tear her gaze away. When Brainiac finally turned to face her once more, the wall slid back into place._

_Ruby stared at Brainiac's emotionless visage, her fear turning into uncontrollable rage. She suddenly felt a weight in her hands and saw that Crescent Rose had appeared. With an enraged yell, she aimed her weapon at Brainiac and fired round after round, striking this chest and forehead with every shot. None of them phased him as he confidently walked forward, only stopping when he was a foot away from her. She fired again, only to have Brainiac suddenly grip the front of the barrel with his hand and blocking the shot. He violently ripped the sniper-scythe from Ruby's hands then, in a single, deft motion, broke it over his knee._

_“Again, futile,” Brainiac coldly declared, only to quickly kick Ruby in the chest and send her flying back into a wall. She struck it, knocking the breath from her lungs. Ruby tried to get to her feet, only for drones to suddenly appear and hold her down._

_“Get…! Get off me!” she shouted, struggling to free herself, only to briefly go silent when Brainiac stepped in front of her. The drones forced her upwards, pulling apart her arms and legs and preventing her from moving more than a few inches in either direction. She only stopped struggling when metallic tentacles extended from Brainiac’s back and began inching their way towards her face._

_“I told you, before,” he said coldly, his tentacles inching ever closer to her dilated pupils, “I will discover the secrets behind your eyes.”_

“No!” Ruby shouted as she jumped up from her bed, breathing heavily. Panicked, she looked around at her surroundings, only to find herself in a small, cozy room. Her breathing began to slow as memories started to flow back. Ruby was safe and sound in her room at Titans Tower. She and the rest of her friends had been staying with the Titans for the past few days, whom by now she considered to be among her best friends.

Ruby sighed into her hands, “Not again. I thought I was over those…”

She sighed again, then looked at the digital clock next to her bed. It read ‘6:00 A.M.’, which was far too early for her tastes. Knowing she wasn’t going to get any more sleep, she stepped out of bed and walked out of her room. Ruby looked at the other rooms in the hall to see that they were all closed. Assuming that no one else was awake, she reached back into her room and grabbed Crescent Rose, along with a few experimental rounds, then made her way towards the training room. The hallways were dark and silent, allowing her to ruminate on everything that had transpired. Despite the others not showing it, Ruby knew that the others occasionally woke up in a cold sweat, nightmares plaguing bad nights. She was thankful that the episodes were coming fewer and farther in between, but that didn't make the ones that greeted her any better.

As she neared the training room, with dark thoughts swirling in her head, she heard a clanging noise from inside that made her pause. Silently, she looked through a crack in the door and saw a single person whacking away at holographic dummies. It was Jaune, doing another round of training on his own. The amount of sweat on his body, coupled with his ragged breathing, told her he must have been doing this for quite some time. She moved to turn away, only for the sounds to stop and Jaune to look at her, surprised that she was up.

“Ruby…” he began, the holograms disappearing around him as the training session ended. Slowly, Ruby came forward and stepped into the room.

“Hey, Jaune,” she called out, fidgeting with her hands, “You’re up early.”

“So are you,” Jaune pointed out. An awkward silence descended between the two as they stared at each other. Finally, Ruby asked the question first.

“How long have you been up?” she asked.

“…About an hour,” he admitted with a hint of shame. Ruby moved to reassure her friend, only for him to speak before she could, “You?”

“Oh, uh… I just woke up.”

Jaune waited a moment, then asked another question, “Nightmares?”

“… Yeah,” Ruby admitted, and Jaune nodded. He had woken up from them as well. Seeing a nearby bench against the wall, the two walked over and sat down on it, their weapons placed on the ground next to them. Another silence fell between them, an awkward cough coming from the young girl.

“I have a nephew, you know,” he finally talked, directing her complete and undivided attention. “His name is Adrian. Adrian Cotta-Arc, son of my older sister Saphron Arc and her wife, Terra Cotta. He had just learned to walk before I left for Beacon, and we were all so excited for him.”

Jaune chuckled to himself, while Ruby remained silent. “That little kid loved Atlesian ships. Living in Argus and seeing them flying around all over the place always made his day.” Jaune then went silent and looked down at his feet.

“My family… My family couldn’t make it to Vale for the Vytal Tournament, so they went to Argus to watch it over the CCT with Saph and Terra. They called to congratulate my team and me after we beat Team BRNZ. That was…the last I heard from them before…" Jaune couldn't finish his sentence, but he didn’t need to. She had recognized the city inside one of Brainiac’s bottles. The question of whether or not they were still in there was still unanswered.

Jaune’s shoulders then began to buckle up and down as tears began to fall, a few drops hitting the matted floor below. “I miss them so much.”

Ruby stayed silent throughout all of this, watching as her friend wept, then surprised him with a hug. The action caused him to stop, and he stared at her with teary, bloodshot eyes, then returned the hug. No words needed to be said, and the two silently comforted each other in their pain and sorrow. After a while, they separated and stared at each other, and a faint smile came to both.

"Jaune, I know that things are hard, but I also know this. No matter how bad things seem right now, I know, without question, that as long as we keep moving forward, nothing will stop us. We will see our friends and family again; I promise you that," she declared with absolute conviction. Jaune smiled back at her.

“Thank you, Ruby.”

“No problem, Jaune." Ruby smiled back. The two then stared out over the training room, each thinking about what to do next, only for Ruby to gently lay her head against Jaune's shoulder. He looked at her, wanting to ask why she did that, just to hear a faint snore come out of her mouth. Smiling, Jaune allowed her to continue and laid back against the wall.

After a few moments, sleep finally came to him, too. By the time the others were roused from their slumber and entered the training room, they came across the scene of two friends sleeping soundly next to each other, taking comfort in the other's presence.

* * *

 

By the time the two young leaders had finally woken up, the others had already begun the task of making breakfast. Garfield and Victor were working the stove, Nora watching over them with drool dripping out of the corner of her mouth while Ren calmly read the latest edition of the Daily Planet. He was reading an article written by a man named Clark Kent about the situation in Gotham City. It had improved somewhat, but he couldn’t help but feel uneasy about the entire thing. Something about it seemed off to him, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

He also thought that the picture the Daily Planet had provided of Clark Kent seemed familiar, but he didn't know why. Something about his face, but with the glasses, he couldn’t quite tell.

Raven and Blake were currently sitting at the table, reading a pair of books from Raven's library. The half-demon was reading an ancient tome of magic, straight from the archives of Azarath, while Blake was reading the Lord of the Rings.

“Gandalf, no,” she mumbled as she read about the wizard’s stand against the Balrog. If there was one thing Blake had to admit about her current situation, it was that Earth was in no short supply of outstanding literature. The works of J.R.R. Tolkien were only the latest she had taken to reading, having already gone through several of Steven King’s works.

“So, what’s on the docket for today?” Yang asked while sprawled across the sofa, still wearing her pajamas.

“Well, assuming nothing comes up,” Victor began while flipping some bacon on a sizzling skillet, “was thinking about getting some training in, working on the T-Car, and other maintenance. You’d be surprised how much work goes into making sure this place stays top notch.”

“I’ll bet,” Yang replied through a toothy grin, “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say Titans Tower is your baby.”

“Titans Tower is my home. The T-Car is my baby,” Victor clarified, causing Yang to laugh. Pyrrha, sitting across from her and cleaning her weapon, smiled at the exchange, only for her and the others’ attention to be directed towards the sound of an opening door.

“Well, look who finally woke up! You two get some good sleep?” Yang teased an embarrassed Jaune and Ruby’s arrival.

Whether they were embarrassed that they had woken up next to each other or that Yang was teasing them about it, Pyrrha didn't know. It was, admittedly, quite a cute scene to behold. The two looked so peaceful to the point where Nora had joined Yang in taking pictures, even adding little filters to spice things up. Yang was already teasing Ruby with them, causing her and Jaune to blush from embarrassment. Pyrrha couldn’t help but laugh at their expense before finally calling out to Yang.

“Alright, Yang. That’s enough,” she said, immediately earning a look of thanks from her partner. “You can tease them later.”

Jaune shot her a look of betrayal while Yang smiled and mock saluted from the couch. Pyrrha merely smiled at her partner as he threw his arms into the air in exasperation.

“Sadists, all of you," he accused, causing his team to laugh. They knew he didn't mean it. He poured himself and Ruby a glass of milk then moved towards the cooks. “Need a hand?”

“Nah, we got this,” Garfield stated as he continued to cook some hash browns, “Almost done, anyway. Grab a chair, make yourself comfortable. Be ready in a few minutes.”

“Okay,” Jaune nodded then sat down on the bar next to Ren and Nora. He stole a glance at the article Ren was reading and nodded to himself. “Hope they get things squared away soon enough.”

“Same,” Ren replied, flipping to the next page as did, “Still, I can’t help but feel something’s off.”

"Yeah," Jaune agreed, sipping from his glass, "Nothing about this is right. First, the worst psychopath I've ever seen brings an entire city to its knees, causing a League founder to take off to do damage control, and then, just a few days later, nearly the same thing happens to Themyscira."

“You think they’re connected?”

“I don’t think that, Ren. I _know_ ,” Jaune stared pointily at his teammate, who stared right back and, after a moment, nodded in agreement.

“Have you mentioned this to the League?” Ren asked, and Jaune nodded.

“I told Superman, and he told Batman,” Jaune answered, “He told me Bats thought the same thing and was having Oracle look into possible culprits. Right now, it’s a waiting game.”

Ren moved to answer, only for the sliding door to open and reveal an excited Koriand'r flying towards them. She was still wearing her purple pajamas, and her hair was a mess, but everyone was instead focused on the bright smile on her face.

“Everyone! It’s Dick!" she called out, causing the Titans to stop what they were doing and crowd around her immediately. RWBY and JNPR followed after them, and Kori activated the circular Titans Communicator's speaker function.

“Dick, you’re on Speaker. How’s it going, man?” Victor called out.

“ _Hey, Cy,_ ” Dick Grayson replied in a tired but jovial tone, “ _Just wanted to check in. How are our guests doing?”_

“We’re doing great!” Ruby answered. “Titans Tower is amazing! There’s so much to do here!”

Dick laughed, “ _I’ll bet. You guys head into the city yet?_ ”

“Not yet, no,” Yang called out, “but we’re itching to go out there.”

“ _You guys will get your chance, don’t worry,_ ” he reassured them. They then heard a sigh, and for a brief moment, they saw Kori's smile falter.

“You’re not coming back yet, are you?” she asked, and Dick was silent for a moment.

“ _… Yeah, not for a few more days. Things are getting better, but Gotham’s still a mess. More than usual. Sorry, guys,_ ” he answered, causing Garfield to groan.

“Seriously, man? Batman still needs you?” the Beast Boy asked. “I mean, don’t get me wrong. I want Gotham to get… Better is a strong word…”

“ _I heard that. Not inaccurate, though. Still, Batman needs me here. You all know how he is. Gotham is his city, and if he says that he needs help, then he needs it._ ”

“Don’t worry about it, man. We understand perfectly,” Victor declared, the rest of the group nodding along with him.

“ _Thanks, guys. I promise you, just a few more days. Then I'll be back in Jump City before you know it._ ”

“We’ll hold you to it,” M’gann chuckled. “So, overall, how have you been?”

“ _Pretty good, all things considered,_ ” Dick admitted, “ _Nice to see Alfred again, Damian’s still a little shit, and Batman’s still dark and broody. Could be a lot worse. At least Joker’s still locked up in Arkham._ ”

“Thank God for that," Garfield shuddered, and a chill went down RWBY and JNPR's spines. They had read about the Joker, archenemy of the Batman. He didn't have any powers whatsoever, and yet the Clown Prince of Crime terrified them more than nearly any other villain they had read about. The number of atrocities he had committed was far too many to count, and he made Crane look positively sane.

Flash once said that other supervillains tell horror stories about the Joker, and most of them were true. Down to every last, twisted detail. All of Gotham was thankful that he was still locked up, and everyone prayed he would stay that way.

“ _My thoughts exactly. With him on the loose, things would have gotten much, much worse,_ ” Dick cleared his throat then moved on, “ _Anyway, onto more important things, Batman asked me to ferry you guys some information. Training programs, equipment schematics, and more. Sending them over now._ ”

“Just got them,” Cyborg announced as he pulled up a holographic interface, the files and schematics rushing past far too quickly for the others to comprehend. Given how he was part machine, Victor wasn’t fazed, and once he finished looking them over he whistled, “Damn, this is some good stuff. I’ll get to work on making these right away, but it will take a few days to finish getting the suits ready.”

"Oh?" Blake wasn't all that surprised, figuring she knew whom Batman intended the information and suit schematics for, but she had to make sure. “Let me guess: They’re for us?”

“ _Yep,_ ” Dick replied with a pop, “ _Say what you will, when it comes to training and designing stuff, Batman knows what he’s doing. I looked it over as well, gave some input, and I expect the others to help you guys out._ ”

“Oh, yes! We’ve been doing that a lot over the last few days! Training with teams RWBY and JNPR has been very exciting!” Kori exclaimed, having bounced back from her earlier disappointment.

“Much better than training with Artemis,” Jaune muttered, causing the other teenagers to snicker. “Hey, you try learning anything after getting thrown around like a rag doll for thirty minutes.”

Dick laughed sympathetically, then a noise in the background caught his attention. After a moment, he spoke back into the communicator, “ _That’s my cue. Going back on patrol again. Some drug dealers have been trying to take advantage of the chaos. See you guys in a few days. Remember, if you go on patrol, keep your identities secret. They are your greatest weapons, so keep them close to the chest._ ”

“Don’t worry, we will,” Ruby answered. The Titans had already made that clear to them when they had first started training at the Tower. They even gave RWBY and JNPR small domino masks to cover their eyes and upper face. Weiss had questioned just how such a small disguise would protect their identity, and Ruby had to admit it did seem questionable, but apparently, it was enough. It was all Nightwing had, and it seemed to work out for him. It probably helped that, for the most part, a superhero's two lives didn't interact all that much. In any case, the Titans maintained that the masks also distorted camera feeds around their faces, making it hard for anyone to get an accurate look at them.

“See ya, man!” Garfield bid his leader goodbye, as did the other Titans. As Dick said goodbye and shut off his communicator, everyone stared at it in silence.

“He seems like a good leader,” Jaune pointed out, and Kori nodded with a smile.

"He is," she noted with a content sigh, and at once Jaune knew precisely what kind of relationship the two had with each other. Smiling to himself, he turned to say something, only to pause as a strange smell wafted into his nostrils.

“Is something burning?” he asked plainly, causing the others to look up sharply and sniff the air. Garfield’s eyes then widened in panic as he hastily turned towards the stove.

“My hash browns!”

* * *

 

“It’s okay, BB. There, there,” Yang comforted a despondent Beast Boy. He was more embarrassed than anything, but at the very least the others didn’t seem to hold it against him.

“At least everything else turned out okay,” Victor pointed out as he continued to pass out waffles and scrambled eggs. Outside of a visibly disappointed Nora, everyone was quite happily digging in.

“Still, man,” Garfield sighed and shook his head, “the hash browns would have made things better.”

“Pancakes would have made things better,” Nora grumbled as she nibbled on her breakfast, causing the Titans to turn and look at her. They were a little confused as to why she seemed disappointed, only for Garfield’s face to warp in understanding.

"Oh, I see now," he began, smiling accusingly. "You're a pancake-loving heathen!"

“I’m not the heathen! You are!” Nora shot back, causing everyone to stare at the two of them with wide-eyes, “You and your firm and crunchy waffles!”

“That’s the best part about them! Waffles are firm, strong and powerful, not flimsy and weak like your pancakes!”

Nora gasped dramatically, “How dare you!”

The two continued to argue over which breakfast pastry was best while the rest of the teenagers watched from the sidelines. It was getting quite animated as time went on when Jaune finally whispered over to M’gann and Raven.

“Hey, uh,” he began, “he isn’t actually…?”

“Oh, they’re both just playing around,” M’gann answered, “At this point, it’s a game.”

“Ah, good,” Jaune smiled in relief. As the play-argument continued, he chuckled to himself, “I swear, it’s like watching a dog bark into a mirror.”

M’gann thought for a moment, pursing her lips, before she chuckled as well, “Yeah, kinda.”

“Still, I think we both know who’s going to win this,” Jaune began, and M’gann nodded.

“Yes, Garfield can be quite persuasive when he wants to be,” the White Martian replied, only for Jaune and now the rest of JNPR and RWBY to stare at her.

“Uh, no? Nora’s right, pancakes are better,” he declared, his friends nodding. Nora suddenly reappeared next to her leader, a confident smirk on her face as she slapped Jaune’s offered palm with her own, then went back to Garfield. By this point, Victor had joined in on the debate, pulling out an intricately detailed slideshow on just why waffles were superior to pancakes. He appeared to be just as passionate about the subject as his best friend.

Slowly, as the debate continued and more and more got dragged in, it appeared that the already lively discussion threatened to turn into something else, only for a red alarm to suddenly yell out and halt everyone in their tracks. Then, after a moment's pause, everyone rushed to their stations.

* * *

 

“Cyborg, talk to me. What’s going on?” Beast Boy, now wearing his purple and black jumpsuit, asked as he walked inside the Titans Tower control room, a now combat-ready RWBY and JNPR following alongside him and putting on their masks. It was similar to the one on the Watchtower, only much smaller and more heavily focused on Jump City. A detailed map of the city itself was displayed on a large central monitor, a big blemish over the targeted area.

“There’s a disturbance going on over at Jump Studios,” Cyborg announced, continuing to type away at his computer, “Hostage situation. Someone broke in a few minutes ago and had taken the studio head hostage in his own office."

“Motive?” Weiss asked, fidgeting with Myrtenaster. The Titans had already told them that, should Jump City come under attack, the eight of them would be allowed to join them. While the lack of Dust vials would be a hindrance, it wasn’t as though she couldn’t adapt. Besides, it would be an excellent opportunity to test out the new upgrades Ruby had designed for her weapon.

Cyborg sighed, and Jaune began to spout out guesses, “Money? Political?”

"Eh…" Cyborg shook his head, "No."

“Then what’s the motive?”

Cyborg paused for a moment then answered, “Apparently, the night you guys arrived, the head of Jump Studios canceled the critically acclaimed _Wonder Twins_ show before a satisfying ending could be reached due to low toy sales. The hostage-taker took offense to that."

Everyone paused, staring at Cyborg blankly. Finally, after a moment, Yang tilted her head in confusion, “…Seriously? He kidnapped a guy for canceling a show?"

“Yep,” Cyborg replied, clearly exasperated.

“Well,” Yang paused, “outside of that being a complete overreaction, why are we being called in? I’m pretty sure the police could handle this.”

"You'd think that, but no. The police apparently can't get to them."

“Why?” Starfire asked, an inkling suspicion growing as to who was responsible.

“The entrance to Jump Studios is heavily guarded,” Cyborg answered while bringing up a security feed from across Jump Studios, “…by stormtroopers.”

The Titans and the huntsmen teams stared dumbfoundedly as the Jump Police Department exchanged fire with a large group of white-armored soldiers, their helmets completely encasing their heads. Instead of bullets, the stormtroopers were firing red blaster bolts at the police, none of their shots hitting their mark but spraying close enough to force them into cover, while the police’s weapons did nothing to their futuristic armor.

“On a side note, Imperial Marksmanship is in full swing, as no one’s been hurt yet,” Cyborg announced with relief, while the rest of the Titans all sighed.

“This is Control Freak, isn’t it?” Beast Boy guessed, and Cyborg nodded.

“Yep. He’s even live-tweeting this.” Cyborg then pulled up another tab to a nearby monitor, this one displaying the Tweeter feed to an overweight redheaded man with pimples marking his face. He was unshaven, with his hair reaching past his neck and drooping over his chest, and his outfit appeared to be a mish-mash of various movies and TV shows.

Yang immediately pegged the man as a colossal geek.

“Yikes,” she said as she read his tweets. They were written in all caps as the man continued to rant and rave about how canceling _Wonder Twins_ was a travesty, that the studio head was greedy, incompetent, and didn’t know a good show from complete trash. His latest tweets were maintaining that he’d only release the hostage once he got a written, legally binding contract to bring it back for a sixth and final season, not the currently planned kid-oriented spin-off.

“Have you faced this guy before?” Jaune asked while checking on his sword. “What can we expect?”

“A few times,” Raven answered, “Mostly he just sits at home and manages his Youtube channel, but whenever something happens that sets him off he goes ballistic and overreacts. He’s never really hurt anyone, so he mostly just gets thrown into jail for a month or two then put on probation.”

“How does he have those…stormtroopers? Aren't they from a movie or something?" Blake noted. She hadn't watched the movies before, but she knew that stormtroopers were the minions of the Empire in Star Wars. They were supposed to be fictional, but as she watched a medium-sized bipedal walker materialize in thin air, she was reminded that these were not.

"Control Freak made a reality-altering remote a few years back," M'gann replied, "With it, he can do anything he wants. Send a person into a TV show, bring a favorite character to life, and much, much more.”

“Wait,” Weiss dryly stated, watching the footage with complete confusion, “you’re telling me that this guy made a _reality-altering remote_ , capable of bending the universe to his whim, and he uses it to…lash out against studio executives? Why hasn’t he used this to do…anything that _actually_ matters?!”

"Honestly, we have no idea. We've asked," Cyborg answered with a resigned sigh, "All we know is that he hasn't patented this thing and whenever the remote is too far away from him, it self-destructs. Whenever he decides to be a supervillain again, he makes another."

“Ah, geez,” Ruby shook her head, “Okay, so what can we expect once we get there?”

“Who knows? Probably something movie related, and a lot of it too. Still, don’t let your guard down around him. Control Freak, when he puts his mind to it, is still very dangerous,” Raven cautioned, and everyone nodded. Cyborg’s eye then flashed red as the information was downloaded into his brain, and he pulled up a holographic interface in front of him.

"Mapping out the quickest route now," he told them as the interface disappeared. An elevator door then opened on the far side of the room, and without needing further instruction, everyone piled inside. The elevator descended, the wheels grinding against the cables as it did. When the car finally stopped, it opened to a large garage built into the island. The walls and ceiling, when not covered by metal railings and walkways, was solid stone, while the ground was paved cement. Multiple driveways shot out like a star, each one ending on a separate vehicle. They saw a plane, a car, a submersible, even a black motorbike. 

"So, this is the T-Car?" Ruby guessed as they stopped in front of the car itself. It appeared to be based on a large van, albeit one heavily modified. Its body was pure white with light-blue trim. Circuitry and electronics marked the entirety of it, which only made itself more apparent as the doors finally opened. For a moment, they were all worried that there wouldn't be enough room, but their worries were alleviated as they saw the car's seating had been carefully arranged to allow for everyone to sit inside.

“Yep, it’s my baby,” Cyborg proudly proclaimed, slapping its hood. “100,000 horsepower plasma turbine engine, nitro booster, hover jets, and top of the line electronic surveillance systems compatible with myself. The Batmobile’s got nothing on this!”

“ _Nice,_ ” Yang nodded appreciatively as she and the others strapped themselves in. It was admittedly tight, but they were able to make it work. “After this, mind helping me with remaking my bike, Bumblebee?”

"Sure!" Cyborg answered as he sat down in the driver's seat, hooking himself into the car's systems. A moment later, the plasma engine roared to life, and the garage door opened. As soon as it did, with sunlight beaming inside, the T-Car rocketed forward and raced down the bridge into Jump City.

* * *

 

They heard the fighting well before they saw it. At first, it was the odd explosion-peppered gunfire, along with loud twangs of blaster fire. As they got closer, the sounds of combat grew louder and louder, until the T-Car itself was beginning to vibrate. Hordes of civilians were watching the exchange from the safety of the nearby buildings, a few even filming the battle. Any that managed to stray too close were quickly dissuaded of that by police officers working the outer perimeter. From what they could tell, none of the bystanders sported any injuries.

“I’ve been looking at the Tweeter feed,” Weiss stated as she messed with her seat’s holographic interface, “Police are urging everyone within a few blocks of Jump Studios to evacuate, so the area should be clear of any civilians.”

“That’s good to hear,” Ruby noted as she chambered a round into Crescent Rose. As none of the enemies, outside of Freak himself, were real, she and others felt confident in going all out. Ruby hoped that the armor-piercing rounds she based off of Red Hood's pistol rounds would be enough to punch through their armor. If not, she could always aim for the gaps.

“You guys all good?” Jaune asked as he checked his armor. The rest of the teams nodded or flashed a thumbs up, and Jaune nodded back. Before he could say anything else, the T-Car rounded a corner sharply, the tires squealing along the pavement, and brought the fight into view.

One of the bipedal walkers noticed their appearance and turned its blocky head to fire at them, only for Cyborg to activate the T-Car’s onboard defense system. Rocket pods extended outward from the side of the vehicle and fired several rockets. The munitions, leaving behind a trail of exhaust, impacted each of the walkers and exploded violently. The legs, now shredded, were unable to support the walkers’ weight and the vehicles immediately collapsed, crushing a few stormtroopers unlucky enough to be caught underneath.

“Titans, go!” Starfire yelled as the T-Car slid to a stop, the side doors opening and allowing the occupants to spill out.

Stormtroopers immediately focused their fire onto the superheroes, allowing the police to return fire accurately, but the heroes were unfazed. Starfire, flying overhead with her eyes glowing green, began throwing green starbolts down into any stormtrooper in her sights. A few times she shifted into forming a massive beam of energy, creating smoking holes in their armor. M’gann, careful to avoid the heat of the blaster bolts, turned intangible and struck the Imperials’ internal organs, disrupting them and causing the soldiers to collapse. Cyborg shifted his arm into a plasma cannon and fired shot after shot into the armored chests, sending each fictional soldier flying back. He noted that, upon their defeat, the figures became distorted and blinked out of existence.

"Sergeant, get your men and any civilians out of here! We got this!" Cyborg ordered, and the police officer nodded.

“You got it!” he shouted over the fire. He had long since put aside his misgivings towards letting a superhero take control of the situation, as had the rest of the JPD. “Everyone, fall back to the perimeter!”

“Yes, sir!” the assembled officers obeyed and retreated, SWAT teams firing their rifles to cover their comrade’s retreat before they, too, withdrew. A quick scan of the area told him that there was no one else around, and he nodded to himself.

“Raven, now!” Cyborg ordered the half-demon. Raven’s eyes flashed purple and threw a purple orb into a seemingly empty space, only for the air to distort and reveal RWBY and JNPR fighting some of the stormtroopers. Yang was pummeling several at once, hurling others into larger groups while Nora was busy knocking down any surviving walkers by caving in their legs with her hammer.

“You know,” Jaune shouted as he ducked under blaster fire, “have to say, I saw this movie after Flash recommended it to me. Kinda geeking out right now!”

“Same here, dude!” Beast Boy, a wild smile on his face, exclaimed as he turned into a green rhino and charged into a group of soldiers, sending several bodies flying. As the stormtroopers recovered, he shifted into a snake to dodge oncoming fire, only to then turn into a gorilla and pummel more into submission.

“Focus, you two can geek out later!” Raven shouted as she fired telekinetic bolts at their enemy. A few tried to shoot her, only for a domed barrier to block any shots. Raven half-heartedly picked them up and threw them away, one of the stormtroopers screaming in a distinctive yet annoying way.

“That was the Wilhelm Scream!” Beast Boy exclaimed as he turned into an elephant and knocked several away, crushing more underfoot.

The battle was beginning to die down, with the odds clearly in the superheroes’ favor, yet the stormtroopers refused to surrender. A scout trooper moved to shoot Weiss, only for Ruby to snipe him in the head. She chambered another round into Crescent Rose as the scout trooper disappeared from reality then turned to Weiss and nodded. Weiss nodded back at her leader and rotated Myrtenaster’s hilt to a vial containing pressurized Freeze Gas. The heiress breathed deeply and shot forward on her glyphs, expertly striking at the exposed under-suits and skewering them. Before the troopers even had a chance to disappear Wiess was already onto the next, boosting herself with her glyphs before finally stabbing her rapier down. Her glyphs gathered the Freeze Gas and, with considerable strain, Weiss erected a massive block of ice that froze the remaining soldiers completely solid.

Weiss, breathing deeply, wiped away a sheen of sweat from her brow. Although not as effective or easy to use as her old Ice Dust, the gas worked. Still, Weiss figured she would have to work on reducing the concentration needed to use it in the future. It was a surprisingly tricky balancing act to manipulate such a volatile substance, which was no more responsive to her Aura than any other ordinary material. Before she could ruminate further, a gunshot rang out from behind her. She turned sharply to see a trooper she had missed fall and disappear on the ground while Blake reloaded her pistol.

“Missed one,” the Faunus said, and Weiss nodded.

“Thanks…Nightshade.” Weiss internally groaned and shook her head. They were in the field now, so whether she liked it or not, the use of their hastily made and indeed not final codenames was essential to keeping their identities safe. That didn’t mean she had to like it, though.

“I think we’re clear!” Ruby called out from atop a parked trailer. The heroes, seeing how she was correct, regrouped at the front entrance to the studio proper then began walking inside.

“So, Cy, where to first?” Yang asked as she reloaded Ember Celica.

“There’s a security station not too far from here,” he answered while leading the way, “From there, I can tap into the security feeds. Find our men and end this quickly.”

“Good,” M’gann said as she mentally scanned the area, “I can’t detect anyone else here. Control Freak has somehow managed to block his location from me, so I can’t find him.”

“ _Great_ ,” Raven droned as they came across the building in question. Jaune fumbled with the door, only to see that it was locked. He grunted, then after taking a step back, kicked the door in and knocked it off its hinges. The others filed in, their weapons raised and quickly scanned the room. There was no one inside, yet they couldn’t let themselves relax.

They followed the stairs upwards a few flights before coming across a door marked ‘Security’. Cyborg quickly tapped into the door’s security systems and easily bypassed them, finding it to be child’s play. He then opened the door to reveal a standard security room, several static-filled CCTV monitors displayed on the wall. A hastily turned over chair and spilled coffee mug was all that was left by the previous occupant.

“Hmm, looks like someone left in a hurry,” Yang noted as she looked around the room for any signs of struggle. She could see none, so she had to assume that Control Freak merely had him escorted off-site.

“Okay, and here…we…go.” Cyborg’s announcement was met with the static disappearing on the monitors, replaced with feeds from around the studio lot. The external feeds appeared to be normal, an occasional patrol of soldiers notwithstanding, but the inside of the lots themselves was something else entirely.

“What…the…hell?” Jaune asked as he looked at the inside of a studio building. He had expected to see a half-destroyed studio lot with shredded greenscreens, not a verifiable jungle with a road running through it. One side had a massive electrical fence along it, and he could faintly see a giant creature walking beyond it.

He took a glance at the other monitors, only to see that they, too, were changed entirely. He saw desert villages, ancient ruins, the insides of entire spaceships, and much, much more. It boggled his mind, but seeing how the rest of the Titans were squarely focused on their objective made him refocus in turn.

“Find him yet?” Ruby asked as she warily took note of a few troopers walking near their position. Ren, anticipating this, took up position near the door in case any came too close.

“Just did,” Cyborg answered and pointed towards a monitor. They saw the unharmed studio head tied to his chair. They couldn’t hear what he was saying to a person offscreen, who they assumed must have been Control Freak, but his expression was a mixture of exasperated, annoyed, and pleading.

“Where is that?” Blake asked.

“Looks like an office in Lot HA,” M’gann answered, pulling out a studio map from a nearby drawer. Taking a pen as well, she quickly plotted a route from their location towards the captive, and Ruby couldn't help but wince. The quickest route they could take appeared to take them through many of the lots themselves, and she couldn't figure out precisely what lied within them.

“Alright,” Miss Martian declared, “this is the fastest route we can take. We’ll have to go through a few sets, but this way we can avoid the more heavily armed patrols and get there as soon as possible.”

“Sounds good to me,” Beast Boy announced while stretching his arms. The heroes prepared to move out, only for the monitors to suddenly turn to static. Alarmed, everyone stood upright and stared at the tv screens, readying themselves for whatever revealed itself.

When the screens finally turned back, they were greeted by the smirking face of Control Freak, and the heroes all scowled.

“ _Greetings, Titans!_ ” he haughtily announced, “ _I knew you all would come to try and stop me, but you’re too late! I, Control Freak, have taken control of the entirety of Jump Studios, and it now bends to my whim!_ ”

“Certainly a dramatic guy, isn’t he?” Blake mumbled under her breath, and Yang nodded in agreement.

“Give it up, Freak!” Beast Boy shouted, having grown used to the villain’s antics, “You won’t get away with this!”

“ _Oh, believe me. I think I will. Still, I am not heartless. Simply leave now and I assure you that you will remain unharmed. All I want is for the_ Wonder Twins _to be brought back for one final season. To give an end to their stories. Is that too much to ask?_ ”

“It’s too much to take a guy hostage for,” Ruby argued, causing the villain to bring his attention towards her, “Look, I get it. You loved the show and are angry to see it get canceled for a stupid reason. I’d be angry, too, but that’s no reason to kidnap a guy and take over an entire studio.”

“ _Oh, new recruits I see?_ " Control Freak smiled. He appeared to be excited, only for Ruby's comments to finally register, and he frowned, “ _You think I haven’t tried other options? I sent letters, emails, phone calls, got my followers to create a petition! None of the executives even pretended to respond nor care! The furthest I got was a canned reply from the receptionist about how they were taking the Wonder Twins in a bold new direction! As if a Flash-animated kids show is a bold new direction! It’s stupid and a disgrace to their legacy!_ ”

Control Freak continued to rant about the injustice of it all, causing Ruby to sigh in exasperation. It was clear that this guy wasn’t going to listen to reason just yet, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t try. She moved to speak again, only for Weiss to beat her to the punch.

“I don’t really care about your reasons!” Weiss declared, halting Control Freak mid-rant, “That’s no reason to overreact like this! Either you let him go and turn yourself in, or we make you.”

“ _Hah! I see you’re the arrogant one of the bunch!_ ” Control Freak laughed, causing Weiss to gasp in offense and the others to chuckle at how accurate that description was. “ _It doesn’t matter. You think that you can stop me, Control Freak, archenemy to the Titans?! They have tried many times before, and they-!"_

“Uh, dude?” Beast Boy interrupted, “We’ve been over this. You aren’t our archenemy.”

Unlike the others' comments, Beast Boy's clarification seemed to catch Control Freak off-guard. He almost seemed upset, but he quickly shook his head and continued.

“ _Well then, how can you hope to stop the Titans’ second greatest-!_ ”

"You aren't that either, man," Cyborg cut in. If he wasn't upset before, Control Freak was now, but with a stubborn scowl, he continued.

_“Third!”_

“Nope.”

_“Top five!_ ”

“Dude, you’re starting to make this awkward.”

“ _Oh, come on! What do you mean I’m not!? How can I not be your archenemy? We’ve fought so many times now I can’t even count!_ ”

“Yeah, we get that, but…” Starfire pointed out with a sheepish smile, “You haven’t really…risen up to that level. Sorry…”

“ _Okay, name one villain who’s better than me!”_

Without missing a beat, Raven began to list them off, “Deathstroke, Trigon, Blackfire, Brother Blood, Puppet King—”

“ _You only fought him once!_ ” Control Freak angrily pointed out.

“Being turned into puppets for a day and having your bodies hijacked leaves an impression on you,” Raven countered, causing Control Freak’s face to fall. He looked at the other Titans to see them nodding along with Raven’s words, all the while the huntsmen and huntresses wondered just who the Titans had faced off against previously. Jaune and Pyrrha honestly felt that being turned into puppets sounded horrifying. Ruby, meanwhile, continued to look at the now sad Control Freak, and a pang of pity coursed through her.

Control Freak’s sad expression faltered and was replaced by one of anger, and he snarled, “ _You know what! I don’t care about being your stupid archenemy! What do you think of that?!”_

“What did this turn into?” Ren asked himself, the sanity of this situation having long since passed. Jaune, equally confused, could only shrug.

Weiss, irritated at the pointlessness of the entire conversation, finally shouted, “Can we get on with this!?”

The Titans and Control Freak all looked at her then each other, before suddenly snapping back to face each other. Control Freak moved to taunt them once again, only to sigh and shake his head.

_“Ehh, the moment’s gone. I’m outside your building. Just…come out and fight me already._ ”

With that final declaration, the monitors shut off completely. For a moment, everyone just stared at the monitors without really looking at each other. No one knew what to say before Nora finally crossed her arms and began shaking her head at the Titans with admonishment.

“I think you hurt his feelings.

* * *

 

True to his word, a quick look out the window showed that an impatient Control Freak was waiting for them, tapping his foot against the pavement. They couldn’t see any more enemies with him, but that didn’t mean they could afford to relax. His remote was clenched tightly in his hand, and Ruby focused her eyes on it.

“We need to get that remote away from him,” she declared. The heroes all nodded at her statement, but before she could burst out to confront him, Raven held out her hand and stopped the Red Reaper in her tracks.

“Wait…,” Raven said, “Something’s not right.”

“Yeah,” M’gann agreed, her brow furrowed, “Why is he just standing out there in the open?”

Jaune thought for a moment, watching as Control Freak appeared to grow more and more irritated.

“Oh, come on!” he finally shouted towards them, “Am I not even worth you all coming out to fight me?!”

The heroes stared at the villain blankly, all except for Nora who was giving the Titans a deadpan stare.

“Told you so,” she chastised them. Starfire’s expression briefly fell from guilt, but she quickly shook her head and refocused. The group studied him for a few more moments before finally Yang had enough and popped her knuckles.

“Well, we ain’t getting this solved stuck in here,” she declared while popping her neck. The rest of the heroes agreed and, after one last pause, burst forth from the security station and surrounded the villain, aiming their weapons and powers upon him.

Control Freak, rather than appear alarmed, sighed in relief, “Finally! I was starting to get _bored_.”

“Give it up, Freak,” Cyborg called out, shifting his arm into a sonic cannon. Control Freak wasn’t even phased and began waving his remote around haphazardly.

“I mean, I guess since I’m not your archenemy, I don’t get the honor of immediate confrontation, but it’s no big deal,” Control Freak attempted to downplay his emotions, but it was clear to everyone that he was lying. For the life of them, Raven and Blake couldn’t find it in themselves to care. As far as they were concerned, Control Freak was a man-child throwing a temper tantrum, one who needed to be put in his place.

“Dude, seriously. Let it go,” Beast Boy gently advised, “Just give us the remote and end this, before someone gets hurt.”

“Oh, please. No one’s getting hurt,” Control Freak waved them off. “Why do you think I had _stormtroopers_ guard the place? I made them powerful enough to stop the police but not enough to actually hurt anyone." His expression suddenly looked panicked, and he briefly looked towards the entrance. “No one was hurt, were they?”

“No,” Cyborg tersely answered. “If you had, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

“Oh...” Control Freak muttered, taking Cyborg’s threat clearly before shaking himself out of his stupor. “Anyway, it’s not like I wanted this! All I wanted was a chance to talk to the studio head, to make my case, but no! They had to call security on me! They left me no choice but to do this! Just like all of _you_.”

Blake narrowed her eyes and aimed Gambol Shroud at him, not buying his excuses. None of the other heroes did either, as they merely reacted by readying themselves for a fight. Raven’s eyes glowed as a dark purple aura surrounded her body, causing her to gently float upwards and join Starfire and Miss Martian. Beast Boy shifted his form into a gorilla and pounded on his chest. Cyborg continued to aim his sonic cannon at the villain, only for him to sharply turn his head to the side. He looked out towards the open air, slightly confused as to why his sensors were picking up something, only for his eyes to go wide when several black objects appeared.

“Oh, shit…” he muttered, recognizing the iconic frame and sound of TIE Fighters. The other heroes turned towards the source, all while Control Freak smirked and flickered out of existence.

“MOVE!” Jaune yelled as the fighters began firing towards them. Unable to escape the laser blasts, Raven immediately erected a psychic dome around them. The blasts shook the dome violently, Raven straining to keep it up, but none of them were harmed. As soon as Raven dropped the barrier, Starfire flew out and began firing starbolts towards them, downing one and causing it to crash onto an empty street.

“Go! I got them!” she yelled out as more TIE Fighters converged on her, firing their weapons at the Tamaranean. Starfire watched as her friends ran out of the open air and into a nearby building, away from the threat of aerial bombardment, and she smiled. Starfire then took a second to look at how many enemies she had, counting five in total.

The TIE Fighters flew towards her, each firing their weapons in an attempt to shoot her down. She dodged each of them, spinning and braking in mid-air to avoid the deadly blasts. Whenever she had a chance, she retaliated by shooting starbolts of her own, most of her shots missing but a few finding their mark. One bolt shredded a fighter’s wing, causing it to spin out of control and crash onto the ground below in a ball of fire, but Starfire couldn’t let herself rest. Seeing how more and more were converging onto her, she flew off and forced the four remaining TIE Fighters to chase after her.

“This,” she yelled as she dodged another blast, briefly turning around to fire a retaliatory star bolt into one’s cockpit, causing it to explode, “this was far more entertaining in the movies!”

* * *

 

With Starfire keeping the aircraft at bay, the rest of the heroes ran into the nearest studio building. Once inside, they shut the door behind them and allowed themselves a chance to think things over.

“It was a trap the whole time,” Jaune noted, clenching his fist in anger at not noticing it sooner.

“Yes,” Weiss scowled, “It appears that, for whatever concern he has for noncombatants, he clearly doesn’t have that for us.”

“Because he knows we can handle it,” Miss Martian pointed out.

“Doesn’t make it any better.”

“We need to focus,” Raven called out, causing the heroes to redirect their attention onto her. “It’s obvious that he’s using his remote to hide, so we can't rely on Miss Martian to find him for us.”

“And we won’t be able to stop this until we get that remote away from him,” M’gann noted, trying to mentally reach out and find the villain at the same time. After a few moments, she sighed and shook her head. “I’ve lost him completely.”

“It’s okay, sis,” Beast Boy comforted her, patting M’gann on the shoulder. Jaune took a moment to poke his head out the door, watching as Starfire continued to engage in her dogfight against the TIE Fighters, then glance around the studio itself.

“Okay,” he began, closing the door behind him, “as much as I don’t like this idea, I think we need to split up. Cover more ground.”

The heroes all looked at Jaune incredulously, “Are you sure about that? I mean, he’s already brought out an army of Star Wars characters. Who knows what else he has cooked up for us?” Yang pointed out, but Ruby stepped up next to him.

“No, I agree with J- White Knight,” she said, “Not that we all go alone, but by splitting up into smaller groups, we can cover more ground and find him. Put an end to all of this.”

“They have a point,” Cyborg spoke up, agreeing with their logic. After a few moments, the rest of them nodded in agreement.

“P- Guardian, M’gann, I say we take the west side of Jump Studio,” Jaune suggested, the two red-heads nodding in agreement.

“Dragon and I can take the north,” Ruby followed up.

“I’ll join you two,” Cyborg interjected, then turned to Raven, “Rae, mind taking Snow Angel and Nightshade east?”

“Sure,” Raven answered while Weiss sighed at how Yang’s joke suggestion seemed to have stuck for the moment.

"Guess that leaves BB with Ren and me," Nora finished, loading a few grenades into Magnhild. Beast Boy smiled at her with a toothy grin, which Nora responded to with one of her own. Jaune and Ruby nodded at them, then looked back out towards Starfire. She was still engaged in a massive dogfight, dodging laser blasts left and right, and keeping their attention squarely on her.

Without saying a word, the heroes took the chance and ran out of the studio, splitting off into different directions. Unbeknownst to them, Control Freak watched them from above, twirling his remote in his hand and a deep frown on his face.

“I can’t believe I’m not one of their archenemies. I mean, sure, I get Deathstroke, Trigon, Brother Blood, and Blackfire, deep and personal connections and all, but we have history! I was one of their first villains! Don’t you think it’s messed up?” Control Freak asked, turning towards the tied up studio head, The balding man stared at him, unamused and looking quite bored.

“I honestly do not care,” he replied. “Can I go home now? I already promised you—”

“Oh, like I’m going to trust a verbal agreement,” Control Freak interrupted and waved his finger. “You and I both know that isn’t legally binding.”

“Oh, so _now_ you care about the law?”

"Hey! All I wanted was to talk to you calmly! Do you think I wanted to tie you up? You're the one who forced my hand!"

“You broke into my office and nearly gave my assistant a heart attack,” the studio head pointed out, but Control Freak shook his head.

“Eh, she was fine. Anyway, back to what we were doing before.” Control Freak then turned back towards the wall and pressed a button on his remote, bringing the screen before them back to life and showcasing an intricately detailed presentation on the merits of a proper finale to The Wonder Twins. A number on its bottom right corner read ‘100/250'.

As Control Freak continued his spiel about just why a season six was needed, the studio head sighed and hung his head, hoping for the Titans to get to him soon.

[~][~]


	12. Sudden Shameless Multi-Cross Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Titans continue their fight against Control Freak and his army of pop-culture movie characters.

#  ** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

#  ** Chapter 10: Sudden Shameless Multi-Cross Part 2 **

[~][~]

In their attempt to find out exactly where Control Freak was hiding, Blake, Weiss, and Raven had gone through every studio building they came across. None of them recognized the movies Control Freak had turned them into, but by the time Blake had come across the current one, she felt that she had grown sufficiently genre savvy. The door had closed behind them when they entered, and nothing they did could force it open, which forced the trio to trek further into the dense foliage.

“Gods, I hate the jungle,” Weiss complained, slapping at mosquitoes that kept buzzing around her. “Nightshade, Raven, how are you standing it?”

“Magic,” Raven replied as she covered herself in a purple glow, repelling any bugs away from her. Weiss turned to Blake, who shrugged.

“I grew up in the tropics. You get used to it.” Weiss shook her head at Blake’s answer, only to stop when they came across an ancient statue of a face. The trio studied it for a moment; then the Remnantians turned to look at Raven.

The half-demon looked at them, arching her eyebrow. “What?”

“Well, do you know what movie this is?” Weiss asked.

“I don’t watch movies,” Raven answered and shrugged, then tried to study their surroundings more intently. “But, this does look familiar. I remember Beast Boy watching it a few times and trying to get me to join him.”

“Well, that’s unfortunate.” Blake sighed and checked Gambol Shroud. The lack of information would impede their progress, not knowing what they could expect to find. Still, if she was correct, the only way to get out of this particular building was further in.

The Faunus pressed onward, Weiss and Raven following behind her until they came across the entrance to a long forgotten ruin. It was dark, even for Blake’s enhanced eyes, and so she ripped a branch off a nearby tree and handed it to Weiss.

“Mind lighting this?” she asked, and Weiss nodded. Weiss pulled out Myrtenaster and shifted the vials to a flammable liquid. If she remembered correctly, the contents were based on the fuel for a flamethrower which belonged to a person calling themselves Firefly. It was highly flammable, although Batman had modified the formula to make it more stable. Even still, just as with the Freeze Gas, the fuel was hard for her to manipulate, but not impossible. When she finally ignited the torch, she handed it back to Blake, who nodded and led them forward.

"I can't help but notice you were having trouble there," Raven pointed out, and Weiss nodded.

"Back home, I used Dust with my Semblance. Dust was naturally conductive to our Aura, which made it easy to manipulate. Dust doesn't work here, so I've had to adapt. It's proving harder than anticipated."

“Hmm, we’ll work on that back at the Tower after this.”

“Thank –” Weiss was interrupted by a tingling sensation on her back, causing her to go still. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Raven go wide-eyed and take a step back, while Blake held out her hand in a calming gesture.

“Stay. Still,” she spoke softly. Weiss felt a sensation crawling up her shoulder, and she slowly turned her head to look into the eyes of a brown and orange spider. Before it could do anything, Blake gently brushed it off with Gambol Shroud, then walked behind Weiss to see her entire back covered in similar spiders. They flashed purple as Raven got them, and then the trio fast walked out of the chamber.

“Gods, I hate spiders,” Weiss finally got out and shivered.

“Guardian would agree with you,” Blake said. She remembered how terrified Pyrrha was of spiders. It was honestly quite amusing to her.

They then came across a long hallway with sunlight beaming down in narrow slots. Weiss moved to press forward, only for Blake to stop her with an outstretched arm. The Faunus' eyes narrowed, then used her torch to wave through the beam of light gently. Suddenly, and without warning, the wall beside them opened and thrust forward a column of spears, a freshly decayed body of a man impaled on them.

“… Why do ancient people have light-based tripwires?” Weiss asked, clearly confused. “For that matter, why is this still working? This looks centuries old.”

"I don't know; it's a movie. One that we're living in," Blake pointed out before carefully maneuvering around the beams of light. Weiss followed her, while Raven simply shifted into a shadow and crawled along the floor, appearing on the other side with a smirk on her face.

“Show off,” Blake teased as she joined the half-demon. They waited for Weiss before pressing on. A vast chasm stopped them, a single outstretched root being the only platform. Weiss created a series of glyphs to jump across while Raven simply flew. Blake, meanwhile, threw Gambol Shroud at the root and turned it into a rope swing, using it to cross the chasm. Now on the other side, the trio pressed forward once more before finally stopping at what they could only assume was the central chamber. In its center was a large golden idol, and Blake pointed to it.

"That's our ticket out of here," she immediately ascertained, and Weiss and Raven nodded. Blake then took her torch and gently poked at the ground before them. Parts of it were firm, but another turned out to be loose and pressed inward. As it did, a poison dart shot out of the wall and embedded itself into Blake's torch, and she nodded to herself.

“You know I can easily get it, right?” Raven pointed out, but Blake shook her head.

“No, I’m pretty certain that if you did, things would go wrong immediately.” Blake nodded to herself then began to gently bound across the room, avoiding all of the slots before finally reaching the idol. She prepared to take it, only to pause and rub her chin.

‘ _This is too easy,_ ’ she thought before looking down and seeing a discarded cloth bag filled with sand. An idea popped into her head, and she reached down to grab it. Blake weighed it in her hand, testing to see if it matched what she thought was the idol’s weight, then removed a handful of sand from it. As her friends watched with bated breath, she quickly grabbed the idol and replaced it with the sand. She waited a moment, and when it did nothing, she sighed in relief.

Blake turned around and began walking back towards the others, “See, I told—”

She was interrupted by the sound of grinding stone. Blake slowly turned around to see the stone pedestal descend into the platform, and the room began to shake. Once the first cracks started appearing, she abandoned all caution and sprinted. The darts began shooting at her, but she ran past them without issue. Weiss and Raven were already out of the room and past the chasm. Blake threw Gambol Shroud again and swung across, noticing how the ceiling was beginning to descend. Weiss was holding it up with her glyphs, visibly straining to do so, and Blake slid underneath. As she did, her bow briefly came off just as Weiss released her glyph, forcing Blake to quickly reach back out and grab the bow on the other side.

“Seriously!?” Weiss complained as Blake put the bow back on.

"Later!" Blake yelled as they ran past the corridor with the spear walls, nimbly dodging all of them. When they reached the other side, they heard a loud sound coming at them and looked towards it. They saw a massive boulder, expertly carved and smoothed into a sphere, rolling towards them, and without a second thought, the three ran towards the exit, through the cobwebs, before finally jumping through to the outside. The boulder impacted the entrance, releasing a massive dust cloud that covered all three heroes. They coughed the dust out of their lungs, while Weiss punched Blake in the shoulder.

“’Oh, no need to grab it, Raven! Doing it your way will only make things go wrong!’” Weiss mocked Blake. The Faunus turned to glare at her, only to stop and look around them. “What?”

Blake took a moment, staring outward in confusion and not making eye contact. “… Why are we in Egypt?”

“Huh?” Weiss asked then looked forward. True to Blake’s word, they were no longer surrounded by dense jungle but instead the bustling streets of Cairo, judging by the Pyramids of Giza seen on the horizon. They rose to their feet and dusted themselves off before looking around. What appeared to be a market surrounded them, with merchants peddling their wares and people carrying wicker baskets atop their shoulders. Blake turned to the idol in her hand, only to see it had shifted into a small circular amulet with a ruby in its center.

“What just….?” Blake asked herself, only for the group to suddenly be surrounded by masked men wearing colorful robes. Blake, Weiss, and Raven readied themselves as more and more came in, several brandishing small weapons and firearms, then began to fire. Raven immediately erected a wall to block the bullets then ejected some nearby stones forward, striking the assailants and knocking them down. Blake, using her Semblance to absorb a lucky shot, sliced a man in the chest then fired into several more. Weiss created a glyph beneath a large group and sent them flying into the air, only for another glyph to send them all shooting back down.

The trio looked around to see if there were any more. When none were forthcoming, they relaxed and let out a breath. Weiss then inspected one of the submachine guns the assailants were using and frowned in disgust.

“MP40,” she noted, having recognized the weapon from Earth’s history. “These guys were Nazis. Great.”

"First ancient ruins and booby traps in the jungle, and now Nazis in Egypt. Whatever this movie is, it clearly—" Blake was interrupted by a large man making himself known. He was spinning a large scimitar around his body, apparently trying to challenge her to a fight. Nonplussed, Blake merely aimed and fired, causing the enemy to disappear entirely. The bystanders around her then cheered excitedly, but Blake ignored them.

"Come on, let's get this over with," Blake droned, and the others agreed. They made their way towards what they could only assume was an excavation site, and as they surveyed, they couldn't help but wonder what other creations their friends had to deal with.

* * *

 

“Guah!” Ruby grunted as the massive, naked bodybuilder hurled her against the wall. Yang, Cyborg, and herself had wandered into what appeared to be 1980’s Los Angeles, and quickly found themselves under assault by someone Cyborg had called the Terminator. For whatever reason, he had zeroed in on Ruby and began attacking her, causing her current predicament.

“Wah!” she screamed as the Terminator tried to punch her, only for Ruby to turn into a cloud of rose petals and escape the blow. The juggernaut’s punch shattered the wall where her head once stood, and as he turned to face her, Ruby shot him in the face. The fifty-caliber bullet struck the skull, knocking him back before he slowly stared at Ruby. Half of its face was gone, showing the metal skull and glowing red eye underneath.

"You're like Penny's evil older brother!" Ruby exclaimed as the Terminator tore apart a nearby crate and pulled out a massive minigun. The weapon whirled to life as the cybernetic assassin began firing at Ruby, forcing the huntress to once again turn into petals to dodge. With mechanical precision, the Terminator followed Ruby with a stream of concrete-shredding fire, never once allowing her to take a chance to retaliate until it finally ran out of ammo, giving Ruby the opportunity to shoot it once again in the chest. The shot staggered it, and Ruby followed up by charging forward and slicing across its body with her scythe. The blows did nothing but allow the Terminator a chance to grab Ruby’s weapon and rip it out of her hands, then toss it to the side. It glared down on her, and Ruby suddenly felt small.

“…eep,” she squeaked, but before it could do anything to her, a yellow blur suddenly shot out towards it and sucker-punched the assassin across the street and into a nearby oil tanker.

“Hasta la vista, baby,” Yang quipped, her eyes burning red, as she fired a single shot at the oil tanker. The fuel ignited and promptly exploded, showering the area with fire and debris.

“Y- Dragon! You’re here!” Ruby exclaimed before rushing to grab her fallen weapon. “Where were you?”

“Fighting some big—” Yang was interrupted by a screaming Cyborg being thrown at them. Yang caught Cyborg, the mass causing her to skid back across the pavement.

“Thanks,” Cyborg said as Yang gently let him down. Yang nodded and cocked her shotgun once more. Before them stood a shimmering figure. They couldn’t quite make it out, but when it stepped onto a puddle, the invisibility tech malfunctioned and revealed the metal-masked visage of the Predator. It stared at them, making clicking noises before slowly removing its helmet with a hiss of pressurized air to show its bloodied face. Instead of jaws were two sets of mandibles, and Yang and Ruby stared at it. It was the first time Yang honestly got a good look at the creature, and only one phrase came to mind.

“You are one… _ugly_ mother—” Yang began, but the Predator roared and extended out his wrist blades. The heroes readied themselves, only for a grinding noise to sound off behind them. They turned around to see the skeletal remains of the Terminator rise out of the flames and shuffle towards them.

“Ah, great,” Ruby grunted before Cyborg placed his hand on her shoulder.

“You two focus on the Predator. I got this,” he stated as he marched towards the robot, shifting his arm back into a fist. “Alright, Arnie! Let’s dance!”

The combatants all charged at each other, Cyborg rushing to the T-100 while Yang and Ruby rushed towards the Predator. A clash of fist and blade soon sounded as the two sides squared off against one another. Cyborg fired a cone of compressed sound at the Terminator, only for the robot to barrel through and tackle him into a nearby car. The chrome skeleton then began to repeatedly punch into Cyborg's sides, just for Cyborg to grab one of the arms and twist it, freeing his other arm to punch directly into the chassis. The body stumbled back, and Cyborg shifted his arm into a plasma cannon and began firing, aiming for and hitting center mass. The intense heat caused the metal body to glow, but it didn't stop the Terminator from charging at Cyborg once more.

Cyborg met it head on, lowering his body to grab the T-100 by the waist and hoist it upwards. He ignored its powerful blows to his back then slammed it onto the ground. Not wanting to let it have a chance to retaliate, Cyborg immediately attacked it, repeatedly punching and stomping onto its head. Turning both of his arms into sonic cannons, he bombarded both sides of its head with intense sound waves. They rattled the inside of its metallic skull, and sparks began to fly, but before lasting damage could be done, the Terminator raised its legs and kicked Cyborg hard in the stomach, sending him flying.

“Oof!” he grunted as he flew back, skidding against the asphalt. He turned that skid into a roll and landed on his feet just as the Terminator rose off the ground. Cyborg took the chance to watch how Ruby and Yang were doing against the Predator, and from what he could see, they were holding their own. When the Terminator turned to look at Ruby once more, Cyborg's eyes narrowed, and ports on his back opened up.

“Oh, no you don’t!” he yelled as he activated the jets on his body, rocketing him forward and slamming himself and the Terminator through a nearby building, away from Ruby and Yang.

At the same time, Cyborg was engaged in his robotic tussle, Ruby and Yang were squaring off against the Predator. Yang didn't know how strong the alien warrior originally was, but with how oddly even their fights had been going so far, she was suspecting that Control Freak had scaled the movie monsters to their superhuman strength. She was reminded of this when the Predator picked her up by the leg and slammed her onto the ground repeatedly before throwing her to the side and into a nearby parked car. Glass shattered and metal crumpled, but Yang merely smirked.

“That the best you got?” she rhetorically asked. The Predator responded by aiming his plasma cannon at her, causing Yang’s eyes to go wide and force her to dive out of the way of a plasma barrage. She continued to run, the Predator following her every movement. The barrage only stopped when Ruby shot the plasma cannon right off his shoulder, allowing Yang the chance to change direction and attack the alien hunter directly.

Yang dodged a swipe from the alien and responded with a series of light jabs into his chest, followed by an uppercut. Not to be outdone, the Predator headbutted her and then punched a dazed Yang across the jaw, spinning her around. As she did, the Yautja grabbed her by the shoulders and kneed her in the stomach, causing Yang to bowl over briefly. The Predator prepared to stab downward, only for Yang to quickly recover and slam the back of her head into his lower mandibles. She heard a crack, followed by a roar of pain as fluorescent green blood spewed from the alien's mouth. Yang smiled proudly until she noticed her hair stained by the fluid.

"You got some on my hair, you jerk!" Yang yelled as she launched herself forward to give a flying punch. Her fist connected, and she followed up by another blow from the other side. Ruby joined her sister directly, slicing across the Predator's hamstrings and bringing the alien to his knees. Yang then grabbed the Predator’s dreadlocked head and brought it down onto her rising knee, while Ruby stabbed her scythe into his shoulder. The alien roared out in pain, then grabbed Ruby and swung her into Yang, sending both flying back.

The sisters helped each other up to their feet and stared out towards their extraterrestrial foe. It glared at them angrily, then pulled out a rod from its belt. The rod expanded, showing itself to be a barbed spear, which the alien then twirled before charging at them. Ruby and Yang responded in kind, and the three descended into a brutal melee once they made contact. Both sisters attempted to punch, shoot, stab or slice at the alien’s body, only for the Predator to expertly dodge with a quick turn or lean or block with his spear. The alien would, in turn, attempt to attack the sisters with its weapon, only for them to avoid the attacks entirely.

“This isn’t working!” Yang called out as she jumped away from a spear thrust, firing Ember Celica as she did. Ruby burst into petals and reappeared next to her, shooting the Predator in the shoulder as she passed. Ruby thought for a moment then, with a confident nod, turned to face Yang.

“Chrysanthemum,” Ruby ordered, and Yang smiled. Yang then grabbed Ruby’s arm and spun her around as fast as she could. Ruby, keeping her feet off the ground, turned them both into a mass of red and yellow petals that further increased their speed. As the Predator stood confused, the petal cloud suddenly solidified, revealing Ruby standing still while a Yang-shaped blur launched forward at the Predator.

The alien had no time to react before Yang slammed into the creature with all of their combined momentum. The impact dragged him across the concrete, creating a trough of rubble. Yang refused to let up and repeatedly punched the Predator across the face, his green blood beginning to stain her fist. She only stopped to jump off once the Predator slammed into a wall, halting its movements. Ruby then followed up by turning Crescent Rose into a spear and surged across the lot to bury it into the Predator's chest. It roared and tried to rise to its feet, but its strength was fleeing.

“Got you,” Ruby declared triumphantly, only for the Predator to slowly grab his bracer and open it. It then punched in a few buttons, followed by a loud beep. Alien characters then appeared across the four monitors, and the two sisters eyed them curiously.

When the Predator began to laugh, Ruby and Yang realized what it was: a countdown. Ruby ripped her weapon free of the suicide bomber then grabbed her sister to burst away in a cloud of petals. They hid behind a large dumpster just as the bomb exploded, blanketing the area in bright light. It felt as though the world shook, and Ruby and Yang only dared to look once it finally stopped. What was once a nighttime cityscape was now a desolate wasteland around the immediate area of the Predator, and the two sisters looked out in horror.

“Well,” Yang finally spoke, “glad we weren’t caught up in that.”

“Yeah…” Ruby nodded, then jumped when a sound came towards them. The two sisters turned to see a lone red eye stare at them from beyond a dust cloud, which began to walk towards them. Ruby and Yang prepared to fight, only to relax once they finally saw the rest of the smiling face of Cyborg finally come into view.

“Guess who’s the better cyborg?” he asked while thrusting a thumb towards his chest. “This guy.”

Yang began walking towards him, a smile on her face, “Cy, you son of a bitch!” Yang and Cyborg celebrated their victory by tightly clasping each other’s hands while flexing their arms tightly. They smiled at each other, only for Ruby to cough and shuffle on her feet.

“We should probably get out of here,” she pointed out, and the trio began walking out of the city and the building it was housed in. As they entered the bright of day, they looked up to see Starfire was still skirmishing with the alien fighters. More had joined the fight, but Starfire was effortlessly dodging and shooting any down any that dared to come near her.

“Should we…?” Ruby asked, leaving the end of her question hanging, but Cyborg shook his head.

"Nah, she's got this. Come on; my sensors are picking up something from that tower over there." Cyborg pointed towards a large tower several blocks away from them, and the two sisters nodded in agreement. Their destination set, the trio broke off into a sprint towards it, hoping that their objective would be there.

* * *

 

Following Beast Boy’s bloodhound nose, he, Ren, and Nora found themselves entering another studio building. Beast Boy prided himself on his movie knowledge, but the jungle setting was so typical that it was hard for him to figure out exactly which one they had just entered. Whatever it was, the jungle environment was dark, raining, and the sounds of thunder echoed in the distance.

He honestly found it to be quite spooky.

"Hold up, I see something," Ren called out through the rain. Sure enough, just past the dense foliage, they saw a paved road, a track in its center. On the other side of the road was a massive wire fence, and Beast Boy studied it intensely. He recognized this road, but another rumble of thunder interrupted his thoughts.

“BB, that nose of yours got anything?” Nora asked him. Beast Boy shook his head before turning back into a human.

“Nah, nothing. I smell something _rank_ , but I’m beginning to think it wasn’t Control Freak,” he answered, and Nora dramatically released a sigh. “Sorry, guys.”

“It’s no problem. Let’s—”

“Guys, quiet,” Nora suddenly commanded, and the two boys immediately complied. None of them said a word, and the only sounds they could hear was the pouring of rain and thumping of thunder. Ren turned to ask Nora why she asked them to be quiet, only to follow her eyes to a nearby puddle. Beast Boy, seeing how their gaze was on the puddle, turned to face it.

When thunder sounded again, the puddle rippled.

“Oh, no…” Beast Boy paled, “Guys, I know what movie we’re in.”

“Which one?” Ren asked, pulling out Stormflower. They then heard a creaking sound coming from the fence, and they slowly turned their heads to look at the source. They saw a two-fingered hand gently clasping the electric fence, not affected by it whatsoever, and then saw a massive head peek out over the foliage. It was large and blocky, chewing on the body of a goat with its banana-sized teeth, then turned to look out over the road.

“Stay still,” Beast Boy ordered, “T-Rex’s vision in Jurassic Park is based off movement.”

Ren and Nora slowly nodded as they stared at the dinosaur. It was then that the wires came flying off the fence one by one with loud twangs and formed a gap in the fence. The tyrannosaur stepped through that gap, looked side to side for a moment, then roared. The sound was deafening, with Nora quickly covering her ears to try and block out the noise. The T-Rex began stomping off into the jungle, leaving them behind, but the teenagers refused to move.

“How much do you want to bet he increased her strength?” Ren rhetorically asked in a whisper.

Beast Boy, as quietly as he could, answered, “Very likely. We need to get out of here.”

The others nodded at his suggestion and began walking backward, being sure to keep their eyes on the back of the T-Rex. It was sniffing around the air as if it was searching for something, which unnerved Nora greatly. Nora figured that, should the T-Rex decide to attack them, the three heroes could bring it down. That didn't mean she wanted to fight it right now.

When the T-Rex sharply turned her head to stare at the trio, they all stopped in their tracks. For a moment, they wondered if she saw them, only for the T-Rex to answer their question by roaring at the top of her lungs and charging at them. Nora responded immediately by firing several grenades at the incoming dinosaur. True to Ren’s prediction, Control Freak had upped the creature’s strength significantly as she merely barreled through the barrage, albeit not without a new stagger to her steps.

“Scatter!” Ren yelled as he ran to the side, Nora to the other, and Beast Boy turned into a hawk and flew upwards. The T-Rex tried to snap at him with her massive jaws, only for a well-shot grenade to explode across the side of her face.

“Hey, hey, hey!” Nora called out as she continued to fire grenade after grenade at the dinosaur. Bruises were beginning to appear on her body, along with a few open wounds, but for the most part, it seemed to be unaffected. The tyrannosaur roared at Nora and stomped towards her, forcing the huntress to step back while continuing to fire.

“Lightning!” Ren shouted as the T-Rex tried to chomp on her, only for Nora to spin out of the way and shift Magnhild into a hammer. She then swung, striking the dinosaur squarely on the jaw. She heard a crack and saw several chipped teeth fall to the ground and smirked triumphantly. It proved to be short-lived as the T-Rex, more angered than hurt, swung her tail at Nora and launched her into a nearby bathroom.

“Oof!” she grunted as the grass structure collapsed around her, leaving only a single toilet remaining. She shook her head and looked to see a wet man sitting on the toilet. He didn't seem to acknowledge her presence, instead forcing his shaking body to stare at the T-Rex, who herself was staring at the man with a tilted head. She finally lunged at the man, who futilely screamed as her jaws clasped around his waist, only to be silenced as the dinosaur shook her head violently from side to side. Nora gasped in shock, only for the man's body to shimmer out of existence soon afterward, telling her that the man wasn’t real.

Didn’t make her want to get out of there any less, though. As she got to her feet, the dinosaur once again acknowledged her presence, only for Ren to suddenly leap atop her back and begin firing point blank into the creature. The T-Rex roared in pain and tried to shake him off, only for Ren to backflip off her back just as a green T-Rex slammed into the dinosaur. Recognizing him as Beast Boy, the two renewed their attack. Beast Boy roared and chomped down onto her neck, clasping her with his small arms, while Ren circled her body and fired Stormflower non-stop. Seeing how it wasn't working, he ran towards her legs and tried to slice through the ankles, only to find her hide was too thick. Nora, meanwhile, continued to swing her hammer at the dinosaur, striking her head and allowing Beast Boy to continue his assault. Nora swung upwards, hitting the jaw just as Beast Boy headbutted the T-Rex, only for the T-Rex to, in turn, slam the side of her head into him. Beast Boy became dazed, which allowed the T-Rex to chomp down on his neck.

"BB!" Nora yelled as Beast Boy roared in pain, and she leaped up into the air and swung her hammer at the dinosaur's jaw. Magnhild made contact, the impact jarring the dinosaur and forcing her to release her hold on Beast Boy’s neck. Rather than stay as a T-Rex, Beast Boy turned into a brachiosaur and used his whip-like tail to strike the T-Rex across the face, then used his head as a giant club.

“Lotus, this isn’t working!” Nora yelled as she shifted Magnhild back into a grenade launcher and began firing. Ren looked around frantically, focusing on the electric fence. Getting an idea, he ran towards it and looked up through the pouring rain at the warning lights, only to see that they were off. Quickly, he scanned the area to try and find a way to turn them back on then stopped once he saw a path leading away. There was a sign with a lightning bolt on its face, and figuring that it led to the power room, he turned back towards Nora.

“Lightning, I’m going to turn the power back on!” Ren yelled as he took off. “When the lights turn on, grab the fence!”

"Got it!" Ren heard Nora's voice shout over the sounds of roars and explosions, but the further he got away the more muffled they became. The rain also began to let up, and eventually, he came across an open-air enclosure. At first, Ren was merely content to run past, only to stop once he noticed a section of the wire fence was chewed through, leaving a small gap. Looking down, he saw a series of two-toed footprints leading off into the jungle before him, as well as the entrance to the breaker room. Steeling himself, Ren sprinted through the jungle, past the wire fence, and slammed the door behind him.

Ren found himself in a dark room, pipes lining the ceiling over a catwalk. Unable to see, he holstered one of his pistols and pulled out his scroll to use it as a flashlight. Figuring that the pipes would lead him to where he needed to go, he slowly began walking forward with the second Stormflower pistol extended in his right hand. He heard nothing outside of his clanging steps on the metallic catwalk. Eventually, he came across a series of power switches and thought for a moment on how to turn them on. Finally, he dialed Beast Boy's number and called him. It rang for a few moments before the line clicked.

“ _Hey, dude. What’s up?_ ” Beast Boy answered, the sounds of battle behind him.

“I’m at the breaker room,” Ren said, “How do I turn it on?”

“ _Why would I—_ ” Beast Boy paused, allowing Ren to hear Nora shout indiscernibly in the background, “ _Oh, wait. I know what to do here. Okay, here’s what you need to do_.”

Beast Boy began walking through Ren on how to turn on the power, which Ren dutifully did. He then started pressing every button, turning on the power for the entire park. As the lights turned on, Ren smiled and thanked Beast Boy, only to go still and jump back just as the head of a dinosaur thrust out of a wall of pipes next to him. Without missing a beat, Ren began firing Stormflower into the head, causing it to shriek and withdraw.

“ _Lotus, what’s going on?!_ ” Beast Boy, clearly worried, asked just as Nora shouted in victory upon powering herself up.

“Dinosaur, medium-sized carnivore,” Ren answered as he turned to run out of the building.

“ _Dammit! That’s a Velociraptor! As soon as we stop Rexy, we’ll come to you!_ ”

“Appreciate it,” Ren acknowledged before closing his scroll and pocketing it. In its place, he pulled out his other pistol and began firing at the pursuing dinosaur. The nine-millimeter bullets bit into her scaly hide, but the raptor continued her pursuit, only to be halted when Ren ran out the door and slammed it shut behind him. The raptor snarled and attempted to break it down, only for Ren to merely run off and reload his weapons. Behind him, the Raptor stopped, only for the door handle to slowly begin to turn.

Ren continued to run down the jungle path, before skidding to a halt when a raptor showed herself in front of him. Without missing a beat, Ren aimed his pistols at the creature, just for another to poke her head out of the foliage right next to him. He glanced at it and realized what they had done.

“Clever girl,” he muttered just as the Velociraptor leaped at him. Ren ducked underneath, grabbed the tail as it passed overhead, then hurled it into the second leaping raptor. The two creatures sprawled across the ground and began biting angrily at each other, allowing Ren the chance to escape. After a few moments, he looked back to see the raptors chasing him, to which he turned and fired Stormflower as he continued to run.

He eventually ran into the main building with a brachiosaur and T-Rex skeleton being assembled in the central atrium. Hearing the raptors chase after him, Ren leaped onto the brachiosaur skeleton just as the first raptor entered the room. It saw him and jumped onto the frame, shattering it. Unperturbed, Ren fired his pistol as the creature, the rounds striking its belly before the wire holding him up finally snapped. Ren jumped off the falling bone, landing on the ground gently just as the raptor lunged towards him. Ren sidestepped her, slicing downward with Stormflower. The raptor shrieked in pain, which only increased when Ren kicked her to the ground and stabbed her neck. She flailed, only stopping when Ren pulled out his pistol and shot it in the head, finally killing it. The raptor shimmered out of existence, and Ren allowed himself a chance to breathe.

His reprieve was cut short as the other two raptors entered the atrium, flanking him to his front and back. Ren stood up and aimed his pistols at both creatures, preparing to fire as one leaped towards him with a high-pitched squeal. It was cut short as a green tyrannosaur suddenly swooped in to chomp on the raptor, while an excited Nora fired at the other raptor from atop his back The grenade killed the raptor instantly in a ball of fire, just as Beast Boy threw the dying raptor’s disappearing corpse into the assembled T-Rex skeleton, shattering it. Triumphantly, Beast Boy roared just as a banner reading ‘When Dinosaurs Ruled The Earth’ fell to the ground in front of him.

Ren smiled at his friends as Nora jumped off Beast Boy to hug him. Beast Boy turned back into a human and smiled at him as well.

“Good job, dude. Should have seen her,” Beast Boy pointed his thumb at a beaming Nora. “Rexy never stood a chance.”

“She didn’t need the power up. Just made it finish faster,” Ren declared, much to Nora’s pleasure. Beast Boy then turned back into a bloodhound and began sniffing the ground before leading them all out of the building.

“You know,” Nora began as she reloaded her weapon, internally bemoaning the lack of pink in the grenades, “have to wonder what everyone else had to go through.”

"I wonder that, too," Ren answered truthfully, hoping that the others had better luck than they did.

* * *

 

Jaune, Pyrrha, and M’gann crept through the dark hallways of the Nostromo, M’gann scanning for the Alien at every turn. Their hearts were beating loudly in their chests, and they could honestly say that they were terrified.

“Why did I choose this building?" Jaune muttered to himself as he kept his eyes on the motion tracker they had stolen from a room.

“You had no idea this was a horror movie, Jaune,” Pyrrha responded while keeping Milo at the ready. Her weapon may not have been powerful enough to pierce the Xenomorph’s exoskeleton, but it could at least drive it off long enough for them to lead it to the airlock.

"M'gann, are you sure that we have to kill this thing to get out?" Jaune asked, and Miss Martian nodded.

“Yes, quite. As soon as the chestburster appeared, the doors to the lot locked us in. Control Freak already made it impervious to our weapons, so throwing it out the airlock is the best bet.”

“How did he do all of this with a remote?” Pyrrha asked, her hairs standing on end.

“This is a movie studio. It's not that Control Freak created space out of nowhere, more that this lot was already space themed. He just shifted it into what he wanted."

“Great…” Jaune muttered as they rounded another corner, only to stop when his motion tracker started beeping. They threw themselves against the wall just as the Alien dropped down from an overhead vent. Jaune had taken a glimpse at the monstrosity earlier, and its thin, black frame with an elongated head was genuinely unnerving. More than any Grimm he had ever come across, though granted that wasn’t saying much. Its inner mouth slowly came out as it hissed, slime falling from its jaws while its eyeless face ‘looked’ down the other corridors, likely trying to find them. On the other side of the creature was the entrance to the airlock, which they needed to get the parasite into. As it stalked off, Jaune looked to M’gann and nodded at her. M’gann nodded back, then turned intangible and flew towards the airlock. Jaune looked towards Pyrrha, who nodded at him before the two finally began walking forward. They could see M’gann fiddling with the airlock’s controls, and all Jaune needed to do now was find a way to get the creature inside it.

He stopped when he felt drool drip onto his shoulder. Slowly, Jaune looked up to find the black head of the Alien staring down from the shadowed bulkhead above. It hissed at him and lunged down, forcing Jaune to fall onto his back and expand his shield to protect himself as its weight bore him down to the floor. Undeterred, the Xenomorph tried to wrestle the barrier to the side as it prepared to stab him with its tail, only for Pyrrha to begin firing at it with her rifle. Most of the shots did nothing, but one managed to crack the exoskeleton and shoot out acidic blood, which boiled against the shield and began to eat its way through. The Xenomorph responded by pulling Jaune up and hurling him at Pyrrha, leaving both sprawled across the ground, but before it could do anything else, M’gann flew at it and drove it into the wall.

“Go, open it!” M’gann ordered as she wrestled with the monster, using her intangibility to protect herself from the Alien’s teeth, tail, and claws. Not wasting time, Jaune and Pyrrha ran out towards the airlock, finding a pair of spacesuits resting on the wall. They immediately began inserting themselves into them, the sounds of M’gann’s fight against the Alien spurring them faster. Only when they both sealed the helmets onto their suits did they afford to look at how the fight was going, and they could see that M’gann was struggling. She was trying to use her psychic abilities to destroy the creature’s mind, but it was proving to be resistant. When she saw Jaune and Pyrrha were ready, M’gann grabbed the Alien by the shoulders and flew them both back into the airlock.

“Now!” she yelled as she let go of the creature. Jaune immediately pressed the button for the airlock, and the door sprung open. The air began violently ejecting from the ship, dragging M’gann and the Alien out with it while Pyrrha and Jaune held onto the wall for dear life. The Alien attempted to bite and claw M’gann to escape, but M’gann merely kicked it off before grabbing it with her telekinesis. She then threw it as hard as she could out into open space. With the danger passed, M’gann sighed and flew back to the airlock, finding that Jaune and Pyrrha had closed it behind her. Without missing a beat, she phased through the metal door and saw Jaune and Pyrrha had already changed out of the spacesuits, breathing heavily. After a moment, Jaune looked up at both of them.

“I hate horror movies,” he declared, a sentiment both women could only agree with.

* * *

 

When Jaune, M’gann, and Pyrrha finally found their way out of the studio lot, they breathed a sigh of relief.

“First _Nightmare,_ then _Friday,_ and now _Alien_. I swear, was it just me or was every single lot we went into horror themed?” Jaune asked a paler than usual Pyrrha, who nodded. “Okay, good. Well, not _actually_ good, but, uh…you know what I mean.”

“I’m cleaning my mind with _‘Hello, Megan’_ and Disney after this," M'gann added, and the two huntsmen immediately offered to join her. They continued onward, M'gann searching out for any signs of mental activity when Jaune's scroll began to ring. He opened it and saw the words ‘Crater Face' over a picture of Ruby, and Jaune brought the scroll to his ear.

“R-Red Reaper, where are you?” he asked. “Did you find Control Freak?”

“ _We did!_ ” Ruby answered over the sounds of gunfire. “ _Central Operations_ _tower!_ ”

“Where is that?” Jaune didn’t wait to hear her answer as M’gann picked him and Pyrrha up then flew off.

“ _Just follow the big monkey!_ ” Ruby’s response puzzled Jaune greatly, and he went to reply, only for a roar to cut him off. He followed the source, just to stare slack-jawed at the largest gorilla he'd ever seen standing on top of the Central Ops tower. He could see Starfire flying around it, firing starbolts into his body while he, in turn, attempted to swipe her down.

“… What happened over there?”

“ _Well, we just got to Control Freak and were about to apprehend him when a giant hand reached through the glass and grabbed Golden Dragon._ ”

Jaune stared silently for a moment at the battle before them. Sure enough, as they got closer a speck of yellow could be seen flailing against the hand clasping it.

"Did… Did Yang get kidnapped?" Pyrrha muttered to herself, and the shotgun blasts echoing out confirmed it. The Crimson Guardian let out a snort and shook her head; a sentiment Jaune echoed with a grin.

“Oh, we are _so_ giving her grief about this afterward."

“ _I already called dibs on that, Vomit Boy._ ”

* * *

 

“Star! Get me out of here!” Yang yelled as she continued to try and punch her way out of King Kong’s grip. Despite his massive size, the great ape wasn’t holding onto her all that hard, meaning that Yang’s Semblance wasn’t kicking in.

“I’m trying!” Starfire replied, firing green starbolts at Kong’s face. The gorilla roared and swung its open palm at the Tamaranean, who squeaked before diving down underneath.

“Hey, ugly!” Yang shouted at Kong, who briefly looked down towards her. She responded by firing Ember Celica at his face, the attack doing nothing to the creature. Yang had intended the shot to merely voice her displeasure, but to her surprise Kong seemed to be shocked and saddened by her attack. Then, to her further surprise, it gently put her on the roof next to his feet before standing upright again. When Kong saw Starfire fly back towards him, he scowled and pounded on his chest, careful to keep himself between Yang and her friend.

“Oh, great. He thinks he’s protecting me,” Yang realized as Starfire shot a concentrated beam of ultraviolet energy at the giant ape, striking him in the face and staggering him slightly. Kong roared defiantly, jumping up into the air as Starfire banked upwards, swatting her with his open palm and sending her flailing body down.

“Ahh!” she screamed before righting herself. As she flew back up, Starfire could see Yang firing her weapons at Kong, retaliating for him attacking her friend. Kong, rather than fight back, merely shielded himself with his arm, allowing Starfire the chance to fly up and deliver a flying uppercut. The blow staggered it, and then Kong shook his head and roared.

“Star, keep at it! I have an idea!” Yang yelled as she began to scale Kong’s fur. Starfire nodded then flew back, firing starbolts as she did. Kong got angry and tore a chunk of the building off to hurl as a projectile. Starfire fired a concentrated beam into it, the energy shattering it into rubble. She followed that up by staring intensely at Kong, her eyes glowing bright green before shooting beams of energy out of them. Surprised, Kong could only throw his hand forward to block the eyebeams, allowing Yang to continue unchecked. When she got to his neck, she turned to signal Starfire to fly towards them; a signal Starfire complied with. The Tamaranean flew as fast as she could, screaming at the top of her lungs just as Yang launched herself into the back of Kong’s outstretched arm. Yang then rebounded off of it, boosting herself with a concussive shotgun blast, and the two women punched Kong’s face at the same time. The dual blows knocked Kong off balance, and with a final roar he fell off the tower and crashed onto the street below. For a brief moment, Yang and Starfire looked down at him, only relaxing when Kong finally disappeared.

“I can’t help but feel sorry for him. He was strong, and dangerous, but seemed so noble at the same time,” Starfire noted with a sad frown on her face, a sentiment Yang couldn’t help but understand.

“Yeah,” Yang nodded as Starfire flew them down. “Still, he threatened you, and that couldn’t stand.”

"Yes, I agree. Oh! I just realized that friend Beast Boy would be upset if I didn't do this!" Starfire suddenly stopped and floated above the imprint where Kong had fallen, and cleared her throat. “It wasn’t the airplanes. It was beauties killed the beast.”

Yang laughed and clapped. “Outside of there being no airplanes, thank you for the compliment, Star!”

“You are most welcome!”

* * *

 

On the ground below, Jaune, Pyrrha, and M’gann rejoined the rest of team RWBY, JNPR, and the Titans as they squared off against a veritable army of fictional soldiers. It was honestly quite an impressive display to Jaune. He saw white-armored stormtroopers working side by side with Nazis, orcs wearing iron armor firing arrows and charging towards them with their swords held high. He saw dinosaurs leaping towards his friends with their maws wide open and their talons swiping. A loud series of moans directed his attention towards a group of shambling zombies making their way towards them, their flesh visibly rotting and showing bone in several places. And serving as the main event, its arrival marked by dull thuds before revealing its massive white body, was the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man.

“Well, there’s something you don’t see every day,” Jaune duly noted as he stared at the ensemble before him, only for a stray shot to ricochet off his armor and snap him back into focus. Running forward, Jaune saw the head of a zombie explode from a single shot courtesy of Pyrrha, while M’gann flew through several enemies at once, disrupting their organs as she did. When he finally reached the frontline, he was met by a small group of snarling orcs. They swung their cleaver-like swords at him, only for Jaune to block the blows with his shield and push them away. Now stumbled, they were unable to defend themselves before Jaune swung Crocea Mors horizontally, bisecting them at the waist with a series of back and forth blows. Their bodies disappeared immediately, allowing the White Knight to continue onward towards his next opponent.

Pyrrha, meanwhile, ran across the lot, blocking oncoming fire from both stormtroopers and Nazis while firing her weapon in turn. Not burdened by movie logic, Pyrrha accurately shot at the center mass of the villains, only to shift her rifle back into a sword to cleave through a nearby zombie horizontally. Keeping up her momentum, she shifted Miló into a javelin and threw it through several zombie heads at once. At the same time, she threw Akoúo̱ like a discus into the neck of another zombie, quickly slicing through it like paper. Using her Semblance, she retracted Miló then manipulated Akoúo̱ to circle her, creating a razor-sharp barrier that sliced through anything that came near her. Any that managed to break through immediately met Pyrrha’s undivided attention, and before long the sight of vanishing enemies became near constant.

Above them, Miss Martian focused her attention squarely on the marshmallow man. Its happy face unnerved her slightly, but she brushed that thought aside in favor of punching her problem in the face. The blow threw the giant’s head to the side, and when it turned to face her, its face morphed into an angry scowl. M’gann briefly scanned its mind, only to find it filled with unmatched hatred towards her and all human life.

“I always thought marshmallows were warm and fluffy!” M’gann shouted as the ghost threw hot globs of marshmallow from its body towards her. “Not dark and evil!”

The ghost roared in response, expelling enough air to ruffle M'gann's hair and send her slightly back. She merely frowned in response before flying forward. When the ghost threw a punch at her, she phased through the fluffy fist and into its head. For a moment, it stood there in stunned surprise, only to begin wailing as M’gann solidified and started tearing everything around her apart. The ghost punched its head as hard as it could, trying to force the White Martian out, but M’gann remained steadfast. She even tore a chunk out and ate it with a smirk on her face, grimly satisfied at the action.

She continued to rip and tear the ghost apart from the inside out until she finally flew upwards as fast as she could. Her ejection created an explosion of white fluff around her, and for a moment the giant marshmallow man stared forward numbly before falling backward onto the ground with a loud thud. Soon after, the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man flickered out of existence. She smiled proudly as she looked out over the battle below, seeing how the rest of her friends had rejoined the fight, and promptly flew down to join them.

“M’gann!” Nora called out to the White Martian while firing her grenades into a group of orcs. M’gann flew down to her, psychically reaching out into a group of orcs as she did and destroying their artificial minds.

“Where’s Red Reaper?” she asked, turning intangible just as a Nazi tried to shoot her. M’gann then lashed out and threw him into a crowd of soldiers, where Nora shot a grenade into them. The soldiers were engulfed in a fireball, then Nora turned her head to face M’gann.

“She’s still up at the tower!” Nora answered, pointing her finger at a pane of broken glass. The sounds of battle could be heard coming from inside, but the heroes were blocked from the tower entrance by Control Freak’s army of movie villains and monsters.

“We have to get to Reaper!” Jaune shouted as he decapitated a nearby zombie, followed by slamming the front of his shield against another. Nora, fighting alongside him, lobbed several grenades into a nearby horde, sending an assortment of body parts flying apart that quickly flickered away. Cyborg then rejoined the battle, announcing his presence by slamming into a Nazi soldier and crushing him. He then shifted his arm into a sonic cannon and fired it into the army before him. Scores flickered out of existence, and as a small group of orcs charged him, he merely grabbed the nearest one’s swinging arm and swung the orc into his companions. They fell to the ground in a heap, but before they could rise to their feet, a black aura surrounded them. The orcs were floated into the air before a series of psychic waves lashed out and dissected them.

"Raven," Cyborg noted as he continued to fire his weapons into the now significantly reduced army. In the distance, he saw Beast Boy running throughout the enemy forces as a green velociraptor, mauling and clawing anything that he ran into. Ren was running alongside him, firing his pistols into the crowd, while Weiss combined her Glyphs with fire and ice to destroy her targets. The final enemies were taken out when Starfire and Yang flew in from above, the Tamaranean throwing Yang into a crowd of stormtroopers while she herself spun around and fired wide beams of energy from her hands. When she finally stopped, all that was left was fire, smoke, and small piles of rubble.

“Everyone good?” Blake asked as she finished off the ninja she was fighting. She received a series of affirmative shouts and thumbs up, and the Faunus rejoined her comrades at the front door of the tower.

“Alright, I already got the hostage to the police. All that’s left is Freak up there,” Cyborg said while reloading his plasma cannon. The others nodded at him, and then Cyborg opened the door.

They only made it a few feet before they registered their surroundings. Instead of a hastily evacuated reception area, the room held a distinctive science fiction look. Dull-grey metal with white running lights covered the walls and ceiling, with one hallway at the far end encased in shadow.

"I don't like this," Pyrrha whispered as she kept her eyes focused on the hallway. None of them did, and their hairs were standing on end, but before they could take a few steps forward, they were stopped by the distinctive sound of mechanical, labored breathing coming from the hallway. The rhythmic wheezing continued as heavy footsteps grew closer, the silhouette of a large, helmeted man with a cape becoming visible to Blake. The Faunus aimed her pistol at the figure, the others copying her action as the breathing grew louder and louder.

When the echoing exhalations became unmistakable, Jaune’s, Cyborg’s, and Beast Boy’s eyes widened in realization.

“Oh, shit…” they muttered, knowing exactly who was making that sound. The others moved to ask, only for a blood red beam of light to shoot out from a small, black hilt with an iconic hiss.

"OPEN FIRE!" Jaune yelled as the heroes began firing their weapons and powers at Darth Vader. The Sith Lord, unconcerned, merely moved his lightsaber to intersect the attacks, reflecting the energy-based weapons at the heroes and disintegrating the bullets. Nora fired a grenade at him, only for Vader to grab the projectile with the Force and throw it back at her where it exploded on impact. The explosion shot Nora back into a wall, denting it, but she rose to her feet quickly.

Yang rushed to punch him, only for Darth Vader to seize and pin her to the ceiling with a disembodied grip, never ceasing his advance. As he passed her, he quickly swiped his lightsaber upwards, the intense heat breaking against her Aura and sending her flying to the side. Seeing how directly firing at him wasn't working, the heroes split apart, shooting at him from all angles. Vader merely spun his lightsaber around him with expert precision, blocking most of the shots before a white Glyph appeared below him. He looked confused for a moment before the Glyph suddenly erupted into a column of fire.

“How tough is this guy?!” Weiss asked as she strained to keep the fire going, Raven and Starfire joining her in attempting to pin the Sith Lord down.

“Very!” Cyborg answered as he combined his arms into a giant sonic cannon, joining his friends in their assault, only for a red lightsaber to be thrown from the fiery vortex and stab into Cyborg’s shoulder. “AAGH!”

"Cyborg!" M'gann shouted as she quickly tended to him, only to promptly turn intangible as the weapon was pulled out of Cyborg's shoulder and through her back towards its wielder. As it did, the fire began to twist and turn, forcing Weiss and Raven to visibly strain themselves further, before a powerful shockwave sent them flying back. Jaune and Pyrrha dove for cover, a swath of fire washing over them. When they finally looked back, they saw a smoking Vader staring them down, otherwise wholly unharmed.

“How?” Blake muttered, and Vader turned to face her.

“You don’t know the _power_ of the Dark Side,” Vader mocked before throwing his hand towards her. Blake then felt her throat being constricted and her body being lifted off the ground, and as she gasped for breath, she saw Yang charging towards Vader with her fist held high.

“RAAGH!” she screamed as she threw a punch, only for Vader to throw Blake into her, sending both sprawling to the ground. Ren and Beast Boy, taking the form of a rhinoceros, charged at him, but Vader merely redirected Beast Boy’s charge to slam into Ren, sending the Mistrali into the wall. Beast Boy immediately turned back into a human, allowing Vader the chance to rip a light out of its fixture and throw it at his head. Nora slapped it away with Magnhild, but Vader quickly responded by ripping the floor panels out from under them and wrapping them into a metal cocoon. He then moved back towards Blake and Yang, only for M'gann to suddenly fly forth and psychically grab him, throwing him back. Vader stayed on his feet and glared at the White Martian, just as Jaune and Pyrrha rushed him from the sides and swung their swords. Vader turned his lightsaber up to block both strikes, a loud hiss and sparking noise sounding off as the blades made contact. Jaune and Pyrrha glared at the Sith Lord, who merely leaned into their efforts and stared right back through the impenetrable gaze of his mask.

"Impressive. Most impressive," he spoke as the two huntsmen pushed with all their might, Vader merely rotating and keeping them back. "Now, give in to your anger. Only your _hatred_ can destroy me.”

Jaune and Pyrrha said nothing as they separated from Vader and swung their swords again. Vader merely deflected the attacks with his lightsaber, and as Pyrrha and Jaune continued their assault, he expertly blocked all of them. After a few more moments of this, Darth Vader then grabbed Jaune and slammed him into Pyrrha’s side, throwing her across the room and then started to crush Jaune’s chest plate.

Jaune began to scream in pain, only for M'gann to fly into Vader and slam him into the nearest wall, breaking his hold on the White Knight. The wall buckled under the blow, and Miss Martian began to throw powerful punches into Vader's helmet. After a few strikes, dents began to appear before M'gann shifted tactics and tried to destroy his artificial mind. Vader merely rebuffed her attempts with the Force, causing M'gann to step back in pain and grant the Sith Lord an opening. When he swung his lightsaber at her, M’gann quickly turned intangible, allowing it to pass through her harmlessly before following up with a quick jab to the head. Vader caught her fist, then flung her to the side dismissively.

“Guys, this isn’t working!” Beast Boy shouted as he regrouped with the others.

“Yeah, I noticed!” Yang responded while reloading her gauntlets. Cyborg, clutching his sparking shoulder, shifted his other arm into a sonic cannon and aimed it at Darth Vader, while Starfire and Raven hovered over him with green and purple Auras covering them. Jaune, looking over the top of his shield, watched as Vader slowly walked towards them, struggling to think of a way to successfully beat the movie villain.

‘ _Think, Jaune. How did Luke do this?_ ’ he thought as Vader suddenly leaped towards them, his jump turning into a glide. When he landed, the heroes jumped back to avoid his swing. The plasma blade cut through the air with a loud hum. They then heard a loud explosion come from above. At once, they understood that Ruby was still fighting Control Freak, but with Vader in their way, they wouldn’t be able to help her. Not that they felt she needed it, but they wanted to get to her all the same.

Jaune’s mind raced as he thought of ways to bring the Sith Lord down. As he did, his friends began firing their weapons at Darth Vader, who effortlessly batted them away with swings of his sword and the Force. When Cyborg fired his sonic cannon at Vader, he held his lightsaber forward to absorb the compressed soundwaves, somehow, while continuing to advance. Starfire, her eyes glowing neon green, flew around behind and began throwing starbolts at his back, only for Vader to sharply turn around and redirect the green orbs into the wall and, for a split second, allow the sonic waves to strike Vader’s back before he, in turn, pushed them back towards Cyborg.

‘ _Wait a second_ ,’ Jaune thought as he studied the battle. Nora and Yang had recovered and were about to fire their weapons at Vader, only for Jaune to raise his hand and stop them.

“Knight, we do not have time to-!” Yang began, but stopped when Jaune turned to look her directly in the eye.

“I figured it out,” Jaune declared, causing the heroes around him to direct their attention towards him. “Attacking him head on isn’t going to work.”

“Yeah, we figured that!” Weiss yelled, but Jaune continued.

“Yes, but if we focus his attention onto a single target, it would allow everyone else to attack him from all sides! He won’t be able to defend himself!”

The others thought over his proposal, hearing Cyborg and Starfire continue their battle with the Sith Lord behind them. They then nodded in agreement.

“Okay,” Yang announced while cracking her neck, “I’ll go in and—”

“No, I’ll do it,” Jaune countered, immediately raising everyone’s protests. He shut them off with a raised hand while checking his equipment. “In case any of you forgot, I’m the only one here without a gun or the ability to fire energy blasts. All I got is a sword and shield, that’s it.”

“And unlike Beast Boy, your Aura can take his hits,” Raven realized, and Jaune nodded. The rest of his friends looked at him with a frown before reluctantly nodding. Jaune nodded back, then turned to face Darth Vader.

“As soon as I got him occupied, hit him with everything you got. Don’t worry about me.” Before the others could protest, Jaune charged forward with his shield raised high just as Cyborg and Starfire were flung back by Vader. This allowed Jaune to momentarily catch him off guard and slam him to the side with his shield. Vader slid back slightly before swinging his lightsaber at Jaune, who moved to block it with his shield. The shield sparked from the heat of the blade, which only intensified as Vader brought his saber down more and more. The red tip of the lightsaber was barely a foot away from Jaune’s face, beads of sweat beginning to form on his brow as Vader stared at him through his opaque mask.

Suddenly, Jaune released all tension and dropped to his back, allowing his friends an opening to fire a few rounds and energy blasts at Vader. Most were redirected, but a few managed to make their mark. Vader attempted to retaliate, only for Jaune to jump to his feet and swing Crocea Mors towards Vader’s waist. Vader blocked the strike with his lightsaber, only to grunt in pain as Raven quickly fired a swath of psychic energy at his back. She was joined by Ren firing both of his pistols and Starfire throwing more starbolts from opposite sides, buffeting the Sith Lord with their attacks.

When Blake began to pepper her shots towards Vader, he merely blocked the forty-five ACP rounds with the palm of his hand, then used his lightsaber to redirect one of Cyborg’s plasma shots towards her. Blake’s shadow took the shot for her while she continued to fire on Vader’s position. Weiss then created a black glyph underneath Vader’s feet, and he suddenly felt a great pressure holding him down. Jaune took the opportunity to swing Crocea Mors towards his shoulder, earning a grunt of pain from Vader and a shot of sparks from the opened wound on his arm.

“Keep at him!” Cyborg shouted as he continued to run and fire. M’gann took the opportunity to phase through the cascading fields of fire towards the now dueling Jaune and Vader. Although their friends were careful to avoid Jaune, their proximity meant it was impossible to miss him entirely. He was wincing from the pain, but to his credit, he continued to press on. The heroe’s efforts were beginning to wear Vader down, and his movements were more sluggish.

It was then that Vader scored a hit across Jaune’s knocking his blade away and causing him to shout in pain as his Aura flickered dangerously. Vader then grabbed Jaune and by the throat and held him in front of himself, forcing the other heroes to hastily cease their fire, lest they harm their friend. M’gann kept going and as she neared them, she screamed and threw a punch. Jaune’s eyes widened in shock, only for M’gann’s arm to phase through his skull and emerge out the other side, her fist solidifying just before contact with Vader’s helmet. A loud crack sounded, and Jaune felt Vader’s grip release.  Immediately, Jaune turned around and slammed his shield into Vader, knocking him back.

“You okay?” M’gann asked as Jaune checked himself. Seeing how he was unharmed, he flashed a smile at her, only for his expression to turn serious.

“Never do that again, please,” he said, and M’gann sheepishly nodded.

“Yeah, sorry about that.”

Jaune didn’t have a chance to respond before Vader shakily rose to his feet. His mask was noticeably cracked, with one lens now completely shattered and exposing the pale skin underneath. A single yellow eye stared back out towards them in its place, and his breath was now noticeably more labored. Without saying a word, the heroes all charged towards the Sith Lord. He attempted to halt their advance with the Force, but Raven merely pushed it aside. She then formed psychic chains that bound themselves around Vader’s arms, preventing him from halting Yang’s wild charge and punch to his head. Cyborg followed her up with a solid haymaker to his jaw, then stepped back as Beast Boy, now a rhinoceros, charged Vader straight into a wall. As the Sith Lord began to slide down, Beast Boy quickly changed into a gorilla and punched him several times with his heavy fists, which Nora followed up by bringing Magnhild down onto Vader’s chest. A loud crack followed, and Pyrrha took the opportunity to throw Milo into his arm.

Vader roared in pain, then forcibly flung them back with a wave of power. As one of the few fighters far enough away to stay on his feet, Jaune rushed in with a desperate yell and his retrieved sword held high to strike down the Sith before he could recover. Breaking the chains off of himself, Vader faced Jaune with absolute hatred and raised his hand towards the White Knight.

“Be careful not to choke on your convictions,” Vader declared. Jaune then felt his throat constrict, and stumbled to his knees as he found it suddenly very hard to breath. It was then that Weiss created a series of glyphs around their foe and bounced across them, slicing Vader’s body with each pass. Ren, firing his pistols as he ran towards the distracted Vader, jumped high and delivered a solid kick to Vader’s head, shattering what remained of his helmet and releasing Jaune from his grip. Jaune fell to the ground and began to wheeze as he felt air reenter his lungs, his face noticeably reddened as Pyrrha rushed to check on her partner.

“I…didn’t think that…through, did I?” he coughed out, and Pyrrha nodded. Jaune rose to his feet and watched as his friends finished Darth Vader off. Blake wrapped her ribbon around his neck and held him in place with Yang on one end, while Ren and Nora pulled on the other in a bizarre form of tug-of-war. At the same time, Weiss pinned his arms and legs with glyphs, holding him firmly in place. Raven, Starfire, and Cyborg charged up their attacks and aimed towards his head. Vader seemed to realize what was about to happen, and his eyes widened.

“NOOOO!” he shouted dramatically as the three attacks made contact, completely enveloping his body. When the trio finally finished, all that was left of Vader was a twisted mess of scarred flesh and sparking wires that quickly flickered out of existence. The room descended into silence, broken only by the sounds of labored breathing. The Remnantians could feel their Aura healing their wounds, but each movement still made them wince.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Cyborg smiled smugly and nodded.

“Booyah.”

* * *

 

Ruby whirled around Control Freak in a cloud of rose petals, avoiding his double-bladed lightsaber. Despite his large stature, the villain proved to be surprisingly nimble. His swordplay was more akin to a dance, spinning his lightsaber in a dazzling fan of crimson beams and distinctive hums to ward the Huntress away.

"Real quick!" Ruby shouted as she shot a rubber bullet towards Control Freak, who leaped to the side as he noticed her aiming at him. "That laser-sword is _awesome!_ ”

“Thank you!” Control Freak genuinely returned as he aimed his remote at a nearby pile of rubble. The rubble stirred and fused into a giant golem, and Ruby couldn't help but marvel at the display.

“That is so— EEP!” Ruby ducked as the golem threw a punch towards her. Bursting away onto a catwalk to gain distance, she switched to explosive rounds and began firing at the golem, the shots destroying significant portions of its body, only for another click of Control Freak’s remote to repair the damage. Ruby frowned at it from above, knowing that the only way to stop this was to remove it from play.

“Hope this works…” Ruby muttered as she loaded a single custom round into Crescent Rose, aimed at the golem’s center mass, and fired. The round burrowed its way into the center before violently exploding, sending chunks of rubble flying everywhere and forcing Control Freak to dive behind a collapsed pillar to protect himself.

“Yay, it did!” Ruby cheered.

When the rain of rubble finally stopped, he peeked his head out from behind cover and marveled at the destruction before him.

“Holy crap, what kind of round was that?” he asked.

“ _Very_ high explosive,” Ruby answered with a smirk only to see Control Freak aim his remote once more. Not willing to entertain another creation of his, Ruby quickly chambered a bullet and fired at the object, shattering it into thousands of pieces.

“No!” Control Freak yelled as he clutched his hand in pain. The remote sparked erratically, and all around her Ruby saw his constructs collapse and flicker out of existence. He stared despondently out the window as Ruby hopped down to approach him, seeing all of his creations disappear one after another, before sharply turning around to swing his lightsaber at the Reaper. She deftly dodged it, hooking her blade around the hilt and tearing it from his hands, deactivating it at the same time. Ruby then kicked the villain in the gut, holding him down and aiming her weapon at him.

“Give up, please,” she politely asked him. Control Freak glared at her for a moment, before finally sighing and nodding his head. Ruby nodded at him, then pulled a pair of handcuffs out of her belt pouch and cuffed the man to a nearby pole. It was only then that Ruby allowed herself a chance to sigh in relief, happy that it was all over.

“Hey,” Control Freak suddenly asked, bringing Ruby’s attention towards him. “I have to ask, but… Is it true that you eight are the new aliens that were in Metropolis?”

Ruby briefly looked taken aback at the question before nodding, “Yeah, we are. We were staying with the Titans when you, you know, did your thing.”

“Heh, just my luck,” Control Freak chuckled to himself. “The first time in years that I lose control and I just so happen to square off against the League’s newest trainees. Poetic, I suppose.”

“What gave it away?”

"I've been following you guys on message boards," he answered plainly. "Even theorized that the people who helped bring in Scarecrow were one of them, but it wasn't until after I started watching you guys fight that I put two and two together."

“Hmm,” Ruby hummed to herself before staring back out over the studio. She could hear police sirens closing in on them, but remained where she was. She then looked at the shattered remote, and a question popped into her mind. “May I ask you something?”

“Does it look like I have anywhere else to be?” Control Freak stared at Ruby before sighing and nodding.

“Why did you do it?” At Ruby’s question, Control Freak seemed surprised before frowning.

"That jerk you and your blonde friend freed before the fight canceled my favorite show. I just couldn't—"

“You’re not answering my question,” Ruby interrupted him, staring him down firmly. “I mean, why did you do _this_? Any of this? You made something _amazing_ , brought all of these fantastical creatures and creations to life, and you chose to use it like this. Why?”

Control Freak stared at Ruby for a moment before replying with a grin, “Well, like I told the Titans years ago, being a villain is cooler! Way more interesting than being a stuffy hero.”

“And I get that, but there are so many other, better ways to use that thing,” Ruby said, throwing her arms wide before sitting down. “Do you want to know what my main thought was for this entire experience?”

“Let me guess: terror, desperation, panic, anger?” Control Freak declared, only for Ruby to shake her head.

“Wrong. It was about how much _fun_ I was having.” Ruby smiled brightly, much to Control Freak’s surprise. “I was having a blast fighting off all those movie villains. Sure, some got a little hairy, but it wasn’t anything me or my friends couldn’t handle.”

“You… had fun?” Control Freak quietly asked, and Ruby enthusiastically nodded.

“Loads of it. If you ask me, that’s a much better use of your remote than attacking stuck up studio execs,” Ruby added. “You want people to share the love you have towards these characters, right? Then show them just what makes you love them with your remotes. Bring them to life and allow people to live out their favorite worlds, _your_ favorite worlds. These characters should bring joy and excitement to people’s lives, not fear. Heck, if you wanted, you could even be the ‘villain’ of the entire thing. Make it into the greatest show on Earth. Doesn’t that sound better than getting your butt kicked?”

Control Freak stared at her for a moment, running the thought through his head. “… Huh. I can honestly say that I’ve never looked at it like that. In hindsight, seems obvious, now that I think about it." 

Ruby smiled at his answer, only to stare at a piece of broken rubble. Control Freak turned his attention to where she was looking, then sighed.

“I’m still going to jail, aren’t I?”

“Oh, yeah.”

Moments later, Ruby disappeared in a purple flash, leaving Control Freak alone. Police officers soon entered the room he was in and promptly arrested the villain while reading out his rights. Control Freak numbly listened along, having already memorized the speech by rote, but said nothing.

Instead, he preferred to think about the future, and what he was going to do next.

* * *

 

By the time RWBY, JNPR, and the Titans returned to Titans Tower, they were all thoroughly exhausted. A haze of sweat and body odor surrounded them, and they couldn't get into their showers fast enough. By the time they were all done, none were willing to do anything else for the rest of the day, and so the teenagers were content to laze around the living room.

“So,” Weiss began, nursing a hot cup of tea, “outside of how pointless that entire thing seemed to be, I can’t help but admit that it was…kind of fun.”

“Same,” Garfield echoed her statement. “Well, to be honest, most of our fights with Control Freak are kinda fun.”

“I think ‘annoying’ is the right word,” Raven interjected as she read a book next to Blake. The Faunus nodded as she turned to the next page in her book, only to pause when her ears heard the dull sound of Disney songs emitting from M’gann’s rooms, coupled with Jaune, Nora, Pyrrha, and Ruby singing along with the Martian.

Everything was peaceful, and even if it only lasted for a moment, it was all Blake could have asked for.

“By the way, Yang? How did you enjoy your time as a damsel in distress?”

“Oh, screw you, Schnee!”

That peaceful moment was broken by the sounds of uproarious laughter from all parties within earshot, yet despite herself, Blake couldn’t help but smile.

[~][~]


	13. Batcomputer Files - The Darkseid War

**Accessing Batcomputer Archives**

**Username: Dark Knight**

**Password: ************

**…**

**…**

**Welcome, Batman. Please select file for review:**

**…**

**…**

**Selection: Historical Events – The Darkseid War**

**Accessing Archive**

* * *

 

**Timespan:** One week

**Casualties:** 15 million (Human/Amazon/Atlantean/Alien Allies); Unknown (Apokoliptan)

**Combatants:** Nations of Earth, Themyscira (allied directly), Atlantis (Third Party, marginally allied), Green Lantern Corp versus Apokolips.

The importance of this event cannot be overstated. By all accounts, the Darkseid War is one of the deadliest conflicts in human history, both in terms of body count and also how quickly the death toll rose. It was only thanks to the actions of myself, Superman, Wonder Woman, the Green Lantern Corp, and Lex Luthor that the world order didn’t collapse outright.

Despite the war being over for the past ten years, with no further contact with Apokolips since then, the danger has not passed. Darkseid is still out there, undoubtedly plotting ways to overpower our defenses. We must remain vigilant at all times, and understand exactly how this conflict came to be.

**Build Up:**

The first contact with Apokolips was made in Metropolis roughly thirteen years ago between Superman and a scouting force of three-hundred Parademons, led by Darkseid’s son, Kalibak {see _Apokolips – Leaders and Forces_ }. Superman, who at the time believed himself to be a human modified in a secret NASA experiment, was able to fight them off. Hundreds of casualties followed the struggle, but Superman forced Kalibak to flee. As the Apokoliptan did, Superman made contact with Darkseid himself and was quickly overwhelmed. Rather than press his advantage, Darkseid simply took Kalibak and left. It appeared he was more concerned with making his son suffer for his failure.

In any case, an offhand comment regarding Kryptonians led Superman to discover who he truly was, as well as the location of several abandoned Kryptonian colonies near the solar system, including the planet Argo and the destroyed colony of Kandor. ( _Note: Subsequent information gathered from Kryptonian archives following the arrival of the Remnantians suggest that Kandor, rather than be destroyed from internal fighting following Krypton’s destruction as previously thought was instead captured by Brainiac._ ) Recovered Kryptonian technology from these colonies went into the creation of Superman’s Fortress of Solitude, which included an incomplete Regeneration Matrix.

Contact with Apokolips was reestablished two years later when a meteor crash landed into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Metropolis, although this wasn’t known until after the fact. The meteor was recovered by Lex Luthor, who detected strange metallurgical properties inside. It turned out that the meteor was a prison for a creature of gargantuan strength, size, and durability, which broke out in transit next to a small town near Metropolis. Subsequently, it murdered two-hundred-and-thirty-three people in a bloodthirsty rampage, causing Lois Lane of the Daily Planet to dub the creature _Doomsday_.

Superman arrived to take on Doomsday just after it reached Metropolis. There, the two fought, destroying much of the city. After a long, titanic struggle, Superman and Doomsday beat each other to death, with Superman himself dying in Lois Lane’s arms to an audience of millions of people around the world.

_Video - Death of Superman:_

_Ruined remains of Metropolis skyline. Fire and smoke billowing upwards, sirens blaring in the background. Camera focused on large dust cloud, Lois Lane in front center focus._

_Dust cloud dissipates, revealing the motionless body of Doomsday. Superman, heavily wounded, stumbles out and collapses onto the ground. Lois rushes forward and pulls him into her arms._

_Lois (emotional, tears running down face): “No, no no! Stay with me! Please!”_

_Superman (pained): “I… Is… Is he…?”_

_Lois (sniffling): “Yes… You did it. You saved everyone. Like you always do…”_

_Superman (relieved, at peace): “Good… That’s…all that…matters…”_

_Superman closes eyes and passes away, a smile on his face. Sounds of Lois and Jimmy Olsen crying hysterically drown out background noise. Video ends._

I confronted Lex Luthor after Superman’s state-sponsored funeral in Metropolis and accused him of being behind the creature due to similar events previously. {see _Subject Analysis – Bizarro_ }. Lex informed and showed me evidence to back up his claims that the creature had nothing to do with him. He was actually insulted by the accusation. It appeared that, although he wanted Superman dead, he himself wanted to do it after executing a plan or scheme. Seeing Superman be killed by a, quote, “overgrown space-baboon” hurt his pride.

I took the evidence and left, and subsequent analysis suggested the metal was Apokoliptan in nature. Follow-up with S.T.A.R. Labs proved the connection. The answer to the question ‘why’ came shortly after:

Doomsday was sent to Earth to deprive it of its greatest defender, and it was only a matter of time before something would kick open the door. Various world governments began preparing for this possibility.

Contact made with Diana Prince during Metropolis Funeral and files stolen from LexCorp pointed towards the existence of powerful meta-humans capable of potentially defending the planet from outside invasion. I focused my efforts on reports of a woman warrior who fought in the trenches of World War One, called the ‘Wonder Woman’ by trench fighters, as well as reports of an ‘Aquaman’ sighted along the Atlantic coastline.

Doomsday’s body, after extensive study, was thrown into the Phantom Zone via a Kryptonian Phantom Zone projector recovered in the ruins of Argo.

**Actual Events:**

One year after Superman’s death, I began investigating reports of disappearances of scientists around Gotham City. Further investigations showed this phenomenon was occurring worldwide, which forced Robin, Batgirl, and myself to reach out and contact Wonder Woman and Aquaman. Aquaman refused to cooperate, while Diana reached us first.

We discovered the disappearances were tied to an Apokoliptan general named Steppenwolf attempting to create a device powered by a Mother Box that would create hundreds of Boom Tubes across the planet simultaneously {See Apokoliptan Technology}. Diana and I tried to combat him, but we were overwhelmed, and Steppenwolf was able to accomplish his goal. Had Aquaman not had a change of heart and came to our rescue, we would have died then and there.

Millions of Parademons attacked major military and civilian installations simultaneously across the world. Major casualties in India, China, Russia, and America followed as no one was truly prepared for such a large-scale invasion. Aquaman attempted to convince Princess Mera to rally Atlantis’ forces to defend the planet, but it is only after the mysterious death of King Orvax, and the subsequent ascension of King Orm, that Atlantis takes the threat seriously. Four of the Seven Kingdoms of Atlantis rally together to combat Parademon armies located in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans, along with several terraforming structures located therein, but no assistance is granted to the surface world.

Lack of Atlantean assistance prompted Diana to return from exile to Themsycira following the destruction of Bana-Mighdall. She pleaded with her mother to assist ‘Man’s World’ in defending the planet. Amazon reluctance was anticipated, forcing Diana to passionately detail everything she had learned over the past seventy years, both the good and bad in Man's World. Coupled with insulting remarks by Artemis of Bana-Mighdall that questioned the Amazon’s pride as warriors following their refusal prompted Queen Hippolyta to pledge the Amazon’s assistance to liberating the planet.

Moscow, Beijing, London, New York City, and several capitals around the world were captured, followed by the subsequent surrender of many countries.

_Battle of Gotham City_ – Large scale military conflict between U.S. military and Apokoliptan forces led by Granny Goodness and her Furies. Aquaman and I assisted in holding the city while Diana arrived with Amazon reinforcements, marking the first time Themyscira had revealed itself to the outside world in over two thousand years. Diana subsequently fought and convinced the chief guard Big Barda to abandon her post and lend her assistance to Earth’s defense, granting Earth the first significant victory of the war. Extensive damage done to the city’s infrastructure caused Gotham to regress, allowing gangs and super-criminals to again rise to power.

Despite the victory, the resulting casualties involved in victory proved that the fighting would be unsustainable. Global nuclear stockpiles were disabled following a Parademon attack, leaving only the conventional ground, air, and naval forces. Parademons had already begun to terraform the planet into an extension of Apokolips to facilitate its eventual teleportation into the Fourth World, with the central hub established in Metropolis. I suspected the location was chosen in order to posthumously mock Superman and his dedication to the city.

A long shot effort by Earth’s remaining military forces and the Amazons to destroy the source in Metropolis was launched. I concluded that, without Superman, the chances of victory were non-existent, and the world was doomed; I resolved to correct that.

While Aquaman traveled with the last remaining armies to Metropolis, Diana and myself gathered Superman’s still perfectly preserved body from his grave in Smallville and took him to the Fortress of Solitude. We attempted to use the Regeneration Matrix to bring him back to life, but the machine, although slightly repaired by Superman in the years prior, was unfinished. Diana pleaded with the gods to help restore it, and so the god Hephaestus personally answered the call and repaired the structure. Zeus’ lighting powered it, while Apollo and Helios bombarded it with so much sunlight that it almost blinded the two of us.

The effort worked (the Matrix destroyed beyond repair afterward), and a very confused Superman rose from the grave. Diana and I explained the situation to him, and the three of us set forth to Metropolis.

_Battle of Metropolis_ – Last and decisive battle of the Darkseid War. Largest military conflict in human history, with nearly ten million combatants from across the world converging on Metropolis against millions of Parademons and Apokoliptan forces. During the fighting, former Air Force pilot Hal Jordan returned to the planet with fellow Green Lanterns Kilowog, Arisia Rrab, and Sinestro to lend their assistance. Marine sniper John Stewart conducted a battlefield rescue of dozens of civilians under fire that not only awards him a Medal of Honor post-war, but also the attention of the Green Lanterns themselves.

Despite the effort expended, the Parademon forces led by Steppenwolf and Darkseid himself began to overwhelm Earth’s forces until Superman arrived, followed shortly by myself and Diana. Superman’s resurrection and arrival boosted the human army’s morale significantly, especially as he made short work of thousands of Parademons all at once. Aquaman stayed behind to take on Steppenwolf personally while myself, Superman, and Wonder Woman continued to Darkseid. After an extensive struggle, Darkseid’s avatar on Earth was killed, and Aquaman defeated Steppenwolf in one-on-one combat. Superman destroyed the terraforming machine, while other Parademon reinforcements were annihilated around the world by Atlantean forces. A heavily wounded but enduring Steppenwolf was forced to retreat along with all surviving Parademons through Boom Tubes back to Apokolips, ending the war.

**Aftermath:**

The aftermath of the fighting was extensive. Much of Gotham, Metropolis, and several other cities and countries were in ruins. The world threatened to devolve into chaos, forcing myself, Superman, and Diana to work overtime to prevent societal collapse. Superman used the Fortress of Solitude to grow crops and clean water for newly destroyed communities, the Amazons provided stability, and Aquaman commanded fish to feed millions along the coastline. Even Lex Luthor extended his massive wealth and intellect to improving the lives of those who were most affected, if only to propel himself forward.

The possibility of a permanent League was discussed after months of work. However, Diana was preoccupied with reconnecting with her people as well as reestablishing the Amazons as a functional member of the global community. Aquaman, a loner at this point in his life, was unwilling to form a long-lasting alliance and disappeared shortly after, while the Green Lanterns had to continue back to their respective duties. Big Barda settled down in a suburban neighborhood, eventually meeting and marrying the New God Mister Miracle. Superman, Diana, and I remained in extensive contact with one another, and our relationship grew to the point where Lois began referring to us as the ‘Trinity.’ The name stuck, despite my efforts to eliminate it.

Military analysts conclude that Darkseid's desire for slaves and people to torment caused his military effectiveness to suffer, thus explaining the relatively low casualties despite such a large scale invasion.

A noticeable increase in the meta-human population was noted around the world, and the chaos becomes ripe for the creation of many of today's superheroes and supervillains, including Black Canary, Green Arrow, and the Flash.

Atlantis, under the direction of King Orm, remained in hiding from the rest of the world and prospered. This status would continue until Aquaman finally ascended to the throne after deposing his brother four years later, who was attempting to spark a war with the surface world over ocean pollution. Atlantis was fully revealed two years later as a result of the feud between Aquaman and Black Manta.

It wouldn’t be until the invasion of the White Martians that the Justice League, as we know it, was finally formed.

**[~][~]**


	14. Hunters of Justice Chibi - 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More Chibi goodness! An annoyingly catching song is played, much to Weiss' consternation, and Ruby tries to get into the spirit of Valentine's Day.

_*Happy, up-tuned, jingly version of Justice League theme*_

Hunters of Justice Chibi!

* * *

 

**_Catchy Song_** by The Infamous Man

* * *

 

“Five hours...” Weiss muttered, bags under her eyes as she stared at the rest of her teammates. “She’s been listening to that song for FIVE GODDAMN HOURS!!”

“This song is going to get stuck inside your HEEEAD!” Ruby sang as she danced to the song with a bright smile on her face, laughing as she and Starfire twirled in front of the TV with the giant stereos whose speakers were oddly bat-shaped vibrated.

“Come on, Weiss! Don’t be a party-pooper!” Yang chuckled. Weiss noticed that she and practically all of the other occupants of the Tower had headphones in their ears. “The song isn’t that bad!”

“It is when you’ve heard it for five hours!”

“You’re acting very immature, you know.” Blake chided with Raven nodding in agreement.

“Indeed. It’s not like the song has affected us in a negative way.” Ren said, seemingly oblivious to the fact he, Nora, Blake, and Raven were doing that ridiculous dance move called ‘flossing’ in perfect synch.

“How did she get that song, anyway?” Jaune whispered to Pyrrha. “I’ve never seen her put music on her phone.”

Pyrrha had a strange look on her face as she replied, “I... I think Batman was the one who put music on our phones. Something about acclimating ourselves to Earth’s culture.”

Jaune blinked. “So... THAT song is on Batman’s playlist?”

“Yup.” Nightwing said with a smirk on his face. “Bruce’s taste in music would surprise you. He even does his own songs... but he would probably kill me if I shared them with you.”

Everyone gaped at the former Boy Wonder before just turning to stare at Ruby and Starfire dancing to Batman’s favorite song.

* * *

 

**_A Rose for Valentine's_** __by Jesse K

* * *

 

Ruby skipped along happily, pausing in her steps when she came to her sister and Blake.

“Hey guys! Wanna play this new fighting game I got?” she asked while holding up the box cover. “They have these really gruesome finishers, and there’s this cool looking lady with sharp teeth that eats people’s faces!”

“That actually sounds pretty awesome, but me and Blake are going to go see a movie.”

“Ah man,” Ruby quietly groaned as Beast Boy popped up his head.

“You’re going to a movie together?” he asked in surprise.

“Yeah. Is that weird?” Blake asked him, and he immediately began waving his hands around.

“No! I mean, uh, it’s cool. Just surprised me, that’s all,” he explained. The three girls looked at each other and shrugged.

“Well, we better go before we miss the beginning. Later guys.”

“Bye Yang. Bye Blake.” As Ruby waved to the pair, Beast Boy looked over at her in curiosity.

“So…how long have they…?”

“How long have they what?”

“I mean… You know…”

“You do realize she probably has no idea what you’re talking about?” a voice spoke up from nowhere before Raven phased in through the floor.

“What don’t I know?” the curious Ruby asked.

“That it’s Valentine’s Day on Earth,” the half-demon explained.

“Oh!” After smiling for a moment Ruby took on a more confused look. “What’s that?”

“You didn’t have Valentine’s Day?” Beast boy asked in shock.

Raven sighed. “Of course they wouldn't. It was named after a person _from_ Earth,” she tiredly explained. Seeing the still confused look on Ruby's face, Raven sighed again. “It’s basically the holiday of love.” Ruby gasped as her eyes became starry, a bright smile spreading across her face. Raven just rolled her own while continuing. “Usually people dating or married or whatever get each other candies, flower, or take each other on dates. Like a movie.”

“Oh, so that’s what you were talking about,” Ruby said to Garfield while snapping her fingers.

Beast Boy waited for a moment then coughed into his fist. “So, they’re not…?”

“I honestly don’t know. Could be either way. But now that I know what today is..." Ruby tapped on her chin, deep in thought. "Hm, I should keep my options open this time, even with the fresh start here on Earth.” She then looked over to the two titans. “Hey, are either of you…?”

“No,” Raven instantly shot down.

“Sorry little dude, but you’re… Uh, Raven, how do I say this without sounding rude?” In response, Raven silently phased back through the floor. “Oh come on! Don’t leave me hanging!”

“It’s okay, BB. Good luck with her, by the way,” Ruby wished him before moving on, a brand-new skip in her step.

“What did she… Ah, what?! No way!” he protested, and a smug-looking Raven’s head phased back up.

“That’s what it feels like when people assume things about you.” And then she disappeared again.

* * *

 

With a heart-shaped chocolate box and a small bouquet of roses, Ruby walked up to the Wayne Manor and pressed the bell button with her nose. Alfred then quickly opened the door and raised an eyebrow.

“Hey, Al! Are any of the guys home?”

“Yes. One moment, Miss Rose.” The butler zipped away and then zipped back, Damien Wayne in tow.

“Hi, Damien!” she greeted him while holding out the gifts. The boy’s face immediately turned red as he started blubbering. “I was wondering if you wanted to-” He suddenly pulled out a smoke bomb and threw it down. Ruby coughed as it cleared, and Alfred waved a handkerchief to help drive it away. When they looked again, the boy was gone. “Well, darn!”

“I believe I can track him down and bring him back momentarily if you’d like,” Alfred offered, a wry grin on his face.

“Nah, that’s okay! You all have a good day!”

“You as well, Miss Rose,” he said as she skipped away. He smiled warmly before closing the door behind them, then looked up to the ceiling to see a blushing Damian hanging on the wall.

"Master Damian, you know leaving a woman like that is poor manners," Alfred stated with an amused smile. "You're lucky she seemed to take it well. Shall I have her come over later?"

"Sh-Shut it, Alfred!"

Alfred only responded by laughing.

* * *

 

As he was sipping from a slushy, Richard was surprised by Ruby popping up, rose petals falling along her path.

“Hey, Nightwing!” she greeted him, as he was currently in his costume. She then held up the box of chocolates and bouquet, making him jump back in surprise. “I was wondering-”

“I have received the slushed ice treat!” Starfire announced as she hovered over. She then noticed Ruby and her offerings, then smiled in realization. “Oh, have you learned of the yearly love custom already?”

“I just figured out about it today, so I’m kinda running last minute on it. You guys on a date?”

“Yes! We are going to watch the shooting stars predicted in Colorado!”

“Oh, that sounds so cool!” Ruby awed. She then smiled at the two and nodded. “Well, don’t let me get in your way. You guys have fun!” With that, Ruby began to happily skip away.

“She took that well,” Richard quietly noted.

“And it was quite adorable! You appear to have an admirer,” the Tamaranean pointed out while poking his cheek. He half-heartedly shooed her finger away with a laugh.

“Yeah… Let’s head on over. We’ve still got to blow the big one out of the sky, so we got to be early to watch the harmless ones.”

“Oh yes! I must also shoot a shooting star!” She then hooked her arms under his and the two took off.

* * *

 

M’gann, currently in her human appearance, hummed as she packed away a few things, but was then startled by the rosy entrance of Ruby, who was holding a box of chocolates and a bouquet of roses.

“Hello, Megan!” The Martian looked at the presented gifts and blushed a little. “I was wondering-”

“Ruby, I’m flattered, really, but Uncle J’onn and I already planned some training for today.” The Remnantian looked downcast and M’gann sighed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think you’d already learned about Earth holidays. I’m still getting used to them myself.”

“It’s okay. Well, good luck and everything.” Ruby zoomed away while M’gann waved. Just then, the Martian Manhunter phased in.

_‘Do you have them?’_ he telepathically asked her.

_‘You didn’t get these from me,’_ she replied while pulling out the hidden pack of holiday edition, heart-shaped Chocos and handing them to him, bringing a light smile to his face.

* * *

 

Ruby sighed dejectedly while setting down the box of chocolates and flowers onto the table.

“It’s no use. Everyone else is busy or going out with someone. And I have no idea where Weiss is.” Ruby set her chin down and blew at a lock of hair near her nose. “Guess I’ll just have to go it alone.”

Suddenly and out of nowhere, Batman rose up. Ruby jumped in her seat with a yelp while clutching her chest.

“Whoa! You’re too good at that!” she declared while breathing heavily, while Batman merely stared at her stoically.

“I’m good enough at it.”

“Eh, uh, mmm…” Ruby then set her head back down. “So, what are you doing?”

“I came to see why Damien was huddled up and mumbling to himself in a corner. Alfred suggested I start my investigation with you.”

“Oh, that? I was just trying to ask if he wanted to hang out and play the new fighting game I just got.” Batman’s brow rose up as he saw the contents on the table.

“With candy and flowers?” he pointed out, and Ruby shrugged.

“Well, they told me it was Valentine’s Day, so I thought it’d be appropriate.”

Batman stared at her for a moment, deep in thought, before beginning to speak, “Maybe if you wanted to actually date him…”

“Hm, well, I don’t know about that.” Ruby sat up and rubbed her chin. “I’m not really against the idea, but…”

“You’re not the dating type,” he filled in, having already deduced that part of her personality.

Ruby hummed to herself for a moment, then nodded. “Yeah, I guess that’s true. Last time I tried to date someone was after a romance novel binge, but I realized – and Blake pointed out – that I was more in love with the idea. Really, I just wanna hang out with someone and have fun. As friends.”

Batman nodded to that, then, quietly, checked his batphone. Under the name CW in messages, he saw what he practically expected.

_Hey, I’m going to be a little late for our dinner. It’s not my fault this time._

_Might be an hour or two. Ivy and Harley are not being very understanding about this whole thing._

“Tell you what, why don’t you show me what game this is.”

“Huh, you play video games?” Ruby asked in interest.

“Occasionally with Damien or Dick. I would say I’m average.”

Ruby bounced out of her seat, a new light shining from her as she smiled. “Well okay then! Let’s go!”

* * *

 

Sometime later, the two were tapping away on the controllers.

“Ah, I’m not gonna lose!” Ruby decried before her lizard man was uppercut by the frosty ninja.

“FINISH HIM!” the video game announcer yelled. The ninja then kicked the lizard’s feet out from under him, ending the match.

“Whaaaaaat? Your first win and you messed up the Fatality?”

“I don’t do Fatalities,” Batman said evenly.

“Well… Everyone’s got their style. Guess that means I just have to beat you!”

“I won’t let you.” A small smile appeared on the corners of Batman's lips, and Ruby cackled evilly as they started up another match.

[~][~]


	15. Fresh New Digs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Teams RWBY and JNPR take a tour around Jump City with the Titans, specifically to its mall, and learn the benefits of having a secret identity while Cyborg works on improving their equipment. At the same time, a troubled man loses everything and seeks guidance from a kindly priest.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 11: Fresh New Digs **

* * *

 

_Titans Tower, Jump City_

It had been a few days since Control Freak’s attack on Jump Studios. The damage was being slowly repaired, but it wouldn’t be completed for several more weeks. Blake personally didn’t really follow the situation much further after learning that, more content with knowing that no one was seriously hurt. A few police officers got grazing blaster shots on them, only receiving minor burns for their troubles. Nothing a visit to the doctor wouldn’t fix. Control Freak himself, which she happened to learn was his legal name (he had changed it, apparently), had pled guilty to all charges and would spend the next six months in jail, followed by another two years on probation.

For all his faults, the man had good lawyers.

Currently, she was sitting on the couch with Yang and Victor, who themselves were currently watching a movie called _Predator_. Yang had mentioned how she, Ruby, and Victor had fought against one alongside a Terminator, which had caught the blonde’s interest. After some research, she ended up deciding that Arnold Schwarzenegger was the greatest actor of all time and had decided to binge watch all of his movies.

The Faunus didn’t judge. After all, she, Weiss, and Raven ended up watching the entire _Raiders of the Lost Ark_ film after they told Garfield what they had went through. Weiss spent the entire time picking apart the inconsistencies and inaccuracies, Raven only half-watched the entire thing, while Blake herself ended up enjoying it. The others did the same with various other movies and tv shows, with Jaune and Ruby finding _Star Wars_ to be among their favorites.

They all had gotten hooked onto _Game of Thrones_ , although Blake preferred the books.

“Well, that’s the end of that one,” Yang declared as the credits rolled, taking the opportunity to stretch out her arms. She then walked over to the fridge and opened it, pulling out some food to eat in the process.

“So, I was thinking,” Kori began while sitting on her stool, eating a slice of pizza with mustard drizzled on top. Weiss could barely contain her revulsion at the combination, and when Nora decided she wanted to try it as well, the heiress forced herself to look away.

“Don’t leave us in suspense, Star,” Yang called out as she continued making everyone sandwiches. “What’s on your mind?”

Kori smiled and sat up straighter. “I think it would be nice if we all went to the mall of shopping sometime today. “

The others thought about it for a moment, and Weiss took the opportunity to look at her white skirt. Although it wasn’t the exact same outfit she used to wear all the time back on Remnant, as that got destroyed beyond repair following their arrival to Earth, it was similar enough that it served as a neat replacement. That being said, Weiss couldn’t help but see Kori’s point.

“Hmm, I could use a change of clothes. I’ve been wearing this outfit a lot lately,” she pointed out.

“Yeah, same here,” Yang agreed.

“New clothes would be nice,” Blake followed. A chorus of agreement rose from the others as they, too, indicated a trip to the mall was warranted. Koriand’r smiled and clapped her hands together happily.

“Splendid! Garfield, Victor, will you be joining us?” she asked the two males, who both blanched and shook their heads.

“I appreciate the offer, Star, but I’m good,” Victor relayed back to her.

“And if you think you can drag me into clothes shopping, you’re going to have a bad day,” Garfield countered and visibly shuddered, as if the world suddenly got colder. Raven rolled her eyes and Victor laughed, only to smile smugly.

“Besides,” he started, “I gotta finish up your guys’ new uniforms.”

“Oh, they’re almost done?” Jaune asked as he entered the room, having heard their conversation from the other room. “By the way, Kori, I’ll be happy to join you and the others.”

Koriand’r smiled but allowed Victor to continue. “Yep, almost done. Added a few finishing touches of my own to them, but trust me. You guys will like what’s waiting for you.”

“That’s awesome! Thank you, Victor,” Ruby said, then paused for a moment. She began tapping her chin in thought, then raised her finger upward. “Um, if you don’t mind me asking…how are we…”

“Going to pay for new clothes?” Raven finished Ruby’s sentence, and the young girl nodded. She had expected the question, and judging by the looks from the rest of RWBY and JNPR, they too had the same question on their minds. The half-demon then thought back towards what they had told her about life on Remnant, and remembered a key detail about the role of Huntsmen. Judging by the look on M’gann’s face, so did she.

“Oh, that’s right. Huntsmen and Huntresses got paid for their work, right?” the Martian asked, and the Remnantians nodded.

“So _that’s_ why you got mad!” Garfield suddenly shouted in realization.

“I wasn’t mad, I was just—” Weiss started but halted herself. She took a deep breath then nodded. “Yes, M’gann, you are correct. Back on Remnant, Huntsmen and Huntresses were paid to do a variety of tasks. Search and destroy, protection detail, intelligence work, and a lot more.”

“So, glorified mercenaries, then?” Victor suggested with a serious look. Weiss wanted to counter that, but she knew where his thoughts were coming from.

Despite their similarities, namely being a large community of superpowered beings that fought against criminals and monsters, the fact that Huntsmen were paid flew in the face of the largely unpaid work superheroes conducted. Coupled with the fact that one of the Titans’ worst foes was a mercenary by the name of Slade Wilson, otherwise known as Deathstroke, meant that he would obviously be biased against the concept. A quick look around the room told her that the other Titans shared his thoughts while her team was in silent contemplation, likely thinking the exact same thing she was.

Ruby sighed deeply then shook her head, drawing the others’ attention. “Some were, but Huntsmen and Huntresses were supposed to defend the world. For the most part, they did. I wouldn’t say we were mercenaries.”

Seeing that he might have crossed a line, Victor threw up his hands, “I meant no disrespect, was just—”

“Don’t worry, Cy. I got what you meant.” Ruby smiled, and Victor knew all was well. She then turned towards the others. “That doesn’t answer my question, though. How _do_ you guys pay for all of this?”

“Oh, well that’s easy to explain,” M’gann started. “Jump City actually takes care of our utility expenses. We’re considered to be an unofficial extension of the city’s law enforcement and emergency response, just one with unlimited autonomy. As for food and everything else, we each have jobs on the side.”

“Wait, like ‘job’ jobs? McDonalds and all that?” Yang asked as she handed out sandwiches to everyone, the beginnings of a smirk forming on her lips, but Kori waved her off.

“No, nothing like that,” Garfield clarified, “It’s sporadic, really, not a full time thing. M’gann does children’s therapy, Victor assists S.T.A.R. Labs with various research assignments, Kori’s a model, and Dick’s rich as all be.”

“What about you and Raven?” Jaune asked, but before Garfield could answer Raven spoke up.

“I don’t have a job,” Raven pointed out, “I’m not suited for retail work.”

“Yeah, we figured that out a long time ago,” Victor muttered, only to go silent when Raven glared at him. Garfield chuckled to himself, drawing everyone’s attention towards him. Clearing his throat, he leaned back and smiled.

“I give financial advice.” At his declaration, everyone stared at him silently with shock. His composure only lasted for a moment before he started to giggle. “Nah, just messing with you. I did use to work at a meat restaurant – yes, I know the irony there – but then it turned out the chef was a supervillain trying to bake people into pies. Things got out of hand real fast. Haven’t worked since.”

The others all stared at him, and Yang coughed. “Well. And I thought my first job was bad.”

“Anyway,” Blake intoned, wanting to shift the subject forward, “when are we going to go?”

“We can go whenever you’re ready,” Kori answered. The others nodded before quickly finishing the last of their meals, then rose to their feet. They began to walk towards the hangar when Victor called out to them.

“T-Car’s off-limits!” he yelled from the couch, the mall-goers waving back to him in acknowledgement. Victor turned back towards the television for a few more moments before standing up, stretching out his arms, then moving down the hall.

“You working on the uniforms?” Garfield asked from his perch, and Victor nodded.

“Yep. Hope to have them done by the time they get back. You wanna help?”

“Dude, you and I both know I’m no help with machines,” Garfield reminded him with a laugh. Victor chuckled before entering the stairwell. Heading down, he passed by several different doors before stopping at a large sliding door made of steel, its frame dotted with heavy rivets. Victor walked towards an eye-scanner on its right side and scanned his human eye, and a robotic voice granted him entry. The doors slid apart from the middle out, only closing with a metallic clang once he had fully entered. Surrounding him were several pieces of machinery in various stages of assembly, ranging from weapons and gadgets to engines.

Victor sighed contently, allowing the smell of oil to enter his nostrils. Perhaps more than anywhere else in Titans Tower, it was here that he felt most at home. It was at the engineering bay that he did most of his work maintaining and designing all of their equipment, security, weapons and armor, and anything else he could think of. For the past few days, he’d been in here constantly to create, refine, and improve RWBY’s and JNPR’s armors and weapons, and he was almost done.

“Alright,” he said while cracking his neck, “let’s get to work.”

* * *

 

The concept of a secret identity was not a new one to Blake. After all, for much of her first semester at Beacon, not even her team knew she was a Faunus. Even after that whole debacle, her secret remained in place to everyone else in Beacon outside of teams JNPR and SSSN. Not even Velvet, a rabbit Faunus, knew she was a cat Faunus. So to hear that the Titans used secret identities did not surprise her. What did surprise her was the sheer scale the practice was among Earth’s superheroes. Nearly every single one had a secret identity, one that they kept as close to the chest as possible. She was pretty sure that, while the League founders knew who everyone was, the same couldn’t be said for the others. Ruby and Jaune had accepted the practice at face value, chalking it up to superhero convention, while the others had a more difficult time understanding why.

But, as they walked through the streets of Jump City, they were beginning to realize. Instead of being hounded at every turn by paparazzi or energetic fans, the citizens of Jump City passed the eleven of them without even a second glance. It didn’t hurt that Kori was wearing a pair of contacts that made her neon green eyes look more like a human’s, with white sclera and green irises, and people assumed that her orange skin was the result of a tanning incident. M’gann had undergone a more dramatic transformation, turning her green skin white, her red hair, brown eyes, and freckles the only remaining characteristics from her normal form. Raven was the least changed, but without the hood, people just assumed her to be a pale goth girl, no different than any other.

“So, this is why you guys do it?” Weiss realized, and M’gann, calling herself Megan for the moment, nodded.

“You come to find that, after years in this line of work, being able to go out and just be…normal is a luxury greater than anything else on the planet,” she declared with a smile, Weiss nodding in response. She could understand that. Judging by the look on Pyrrha’s face, if she wasn’t on board before, she was now.

“Thanks again, Raven, for getting us here,” Jaune told the half-demon, who looked towards him and nodded.

“Don’t mention it,” she replied, and Jaune nodded. With the T-Car unavailable for them to use, Raven had opted to simply teleport everyone into a secluded alley a mile from the Jump City mall. From there, the group of heroes walked along the city’s sidewalks, chatting among themselves about what they hoped to get. Kori had repeatedly maintained that they would take care of everything and not to worry about paying, which only served to make the Huntsmen and Huntresses feel more guilty.

Jaune’s thoughts then drifted back to their conversation from earlier, about how each of them had jobs of their own on the side. The more he thought about it, the more he came to realize that they’d also likely have to find jobs of their own. Ones that would grant them the time to do their hero work of course, but jobs like that would be few and far between.

He wasn’t too upset about that, however. Jaune never considered himself to be a desk jockey.

When they finally entered, he and his friends were reminded of Vale’s malls. Shops and stores lined the halls of the two-story building, with white tile covering the ground and florescent lights illuminating the structure. Scores of people walked from store to store, carrying bags and other purchased items in their arms.

“So, where to first?” Kori asked with a smile and clap, and Jaune and Ren suddenly felt a chill pass through their spines. It was a familiar feeling to the boy, one he had grown accustomed to back home, and it was just as dreadful then as it was now.

‘ _I should have stayed with Beast Boy,_ ’ the boys thought as the girls quickly dragged them to the nearest store.

* * *

 

_Titans Tower_

“Okay, this is Project White Knight Armor, test number fifty-one,” Victor declared to a recording camera, standing in front of a heavy plate of solid titanium alloy, gold trim along its sides. It was a component of Jaune’s armor, but before he would ever allow the leader of JNPR to wear it, Victor would inspect and test each and every possibility that could be thrown at it. The same philosophy went towards the other’s weapons and armor, and he preferred to be thorough.

“Previous tests have proved the armor composition is resistant to small arms fire. Heavy rounds can cause structural damage, but increasing plate thickness to compensate would significantly increase weight. As such, current thickness of three millimeters will suffice. Current test is to see whether or not changed alloy composition will reduce heat transfer from plasma and energy-based weaponry.”

Victor nodded to himself as he shifted his arm into a plasma cannon, showing it to the camera. He then walked in front of the titanium alloy plate and aimed, breathed in deeply, then braced himself as a jet of flame ejected out of his arm and engulfed the armor piece. He maintained the heat for a few seconds before shutting it off, revealing a slightly charred but still intact plate. He scanned it with his sensors, which showed that its structural strength was still high, and he smiled to himself.

“Fire resistance optimal, switching to direct plasma weaponry,” he announced as he aimed once again. He then fired single shots of plasma directly into the plate’s center. The first shot only scorched the plate more, but with each successive hit, he could see the plate warp more and more until after just ten shots it collapsed entirely into a smoldering wreck. Sighing to himself, Cyborg turned back towards the camera and shifted his arm back into its normal configuration.

“New alloy increased extreme heat resistance by twenty-five percent, but I won’t be satisfied until I can reach fifteen shots before structural integrity is compromised.” Victor then shut off the recording with a thought, then walked back over to the workbench. This was the fifth alloy composition he had devised, and it was growing harder to find better combinations of strength, flexibility, weight, and heat resistance. Batman, whom he was partially making these recordings for, had insisted that all of their armors be heat resistant, to varying levels. As Jaune’s armor was the most extensive out of everyone’s, it was only appropriate that his armor grant the most protection.

At the very least, the testing process had allowed him to develop the other armors with appropriate materials. He quickly scanned through possible combinations then set the automated forge to assemble the piece, before moving over to the electronics bench. On it, he saw the various masks and helmets each of them would be using, each filled to the brim with a highly sophisticated electronics systems. Whether it was an advanced domino mask or full helm, each of them sported real-time Aura tracking, optical enhancement including zoom and night vision, GPS, and even limited monitoring capability of people’s vitals and nearby electronics.

As he continued to work on them, Victor allowed himself to smile. He briefly thought about how the others were doing before shoving the thought aside, figuring that what he was doing was more important.

* * *

 

_Jump City Mall_

“Ren,” Jaune began as he and his honorary brother hefted their bags, “this did not turn out as bad as I thought it would be.”

“Same,” Ren replied, knowing the horror stories Jaune had told him from growing up.

“What is that supposed to mean?” Yang asked, more curious than anything.

“Seven sisters, do the math.”

 “… Oh, yeah. That couldn’t have been fun.”

“No, no it was not.”

Yang nodded at Jaune’s answer and continued their walk through the mall. Jaune had previously mentioned growing up with seven sisters, and she could imagine how they might have made going through the mall difficult for him. Hell, she didn’t think anyone would have the stomach for that much shopping. Feeling an itch on her nose, Yang lifted up her hand, still holding a bag of casual clothing, then scratched it.

“Just over here,” Raven declared as she led them to a secluded part of the mall, one where security cameras would not see them in a particular spot. Once she indicated the spot in question, the group placed their bags on the ground and allowed Raven to teleport them into Titans Tower, relieving them of the load.

“I just have to say, that is a very useful skill to have,” Weiss mentioned, and Raven nodded. “So, where to next?”

“I think…” Koriand’r paused to tap her chin, “that it’s Jaune’s turn to pick this time.”

The others turned their attention towards the young man, who hummed in thought and began looking around the various stores around them. He thought back towards what he himself had already gotten, a collection of jeans, cargo shorts, shirts, hoodies, and jackets, so he felt he was set. When his eyes finally rested on a store, he thought about it for a moment then nodded.

“How about that one?” he said while pointing to the store in question. The others followed his finger then looked back at him in surprise.

“Are…are you sure?” Yang asked. “You know we can go to any store you want to, right?”

“Yeah, I know, and I want to go there. Come on, it’ll be fun.”

* * *

 

On the other side of Jump City, in one of the poorer neighborhoods, a downtrodden man shuffled back to his run-down apartment. His hands were in his pockets, and his eyes were transfixed on the cracked sidewalk beneath his feet. He refused to make eye contact with anyone he passed, which itself was a rare occurrence as people tended to avoid him, just as they had for the past few years. When he finally arrived at his apartment, he pulled out his key to unlock the door, only to see an eviction notice nailed to it.

“What? No!” he muttered before running down the stairs and straight into the landlord’s office. The landlord, an overweight woman getting on in years, appeared to have been expecting him and regarded him with disdain.

“Good, you’re here. I’m going to need my key back,” she declared while holding out her hand, but the man shook his head.

“No, please! Just give me more time! I—” he begged, but the woman wasn’t having it.

“I’ve given you time! Six months’ worth of time to pay your rent! Hell, I even lowered it for you, but you never paid it! Any sympathy I might have had towards you is long gone, Mumbo.”

“Do not call me that!” the man shouted, only to catch himself.  “Please, just give me another chance. I almost have the money.”

“That’s what you told me last month, and the month before that, and the month before that. At this point, I simply can’t believe that anymore.”

“Oh, come on! No one wants to hire a stage magician anymore. I’m lucky to get a single kids party a week.”

“Maybe you should have thought of that before you became a supervillain,” the woman coldly countered, then gestured her head towards her hand. The failed magician glared at her for a moment, then sighed.

“Can… Can I at least get my things?” he asked pitifully, and the landlord’s expression briefly softened.

“They’re over there,” she gestured towards a small bag of clothes and supplies. The man trudged over to them, hoisted the bag over his shoulder, then handed the woman the key. Without saying a word, he prepared to walk out, only for the landlord to hold a pamphlet towards him.

“I don’t know why I’m still trying to help you, but look. Wayne Enterprises has a criminal rehabilitation program. They might be able to help you.”

Rather than appreciate the offer, the man glared at her then left, slamming the door behind him. He left his apartment complex behind him, then looked up to see dark clouds beginning to form overhead. With a scowl, he picked a random direction and began walking, cursing the day he found that magical hat and wand.

* * *

 

“Ahhh…” Yang moaned as she felt the masseuse work across her back, kneading away weeks, if not months’ worth of knots and stress. “Jaune… You did good…”

“Thank you Yang,” Jaune replied from where he was laid across his belly, warm stones spread across his back. Having grown up with seven sisters, Jaune was no stranger to being dragged into spas. At first, when he was younger, it was against his will. Over time he grew to appreciate them, so seeing one in the Jump City mall grabbed his interest.

Across from him, Weiss, Blake, Pyrrha, and Koriand’r sat upon recliners, wearing green face masks and cucumbers over their eyes while having shampoo rubbed into their heads. Ruby chatted with one of the beauty technicians as she filed the young girl’s nails, while Raven, Ren, and M’gann lied next to Yang on separate massage tables.

“Jaune, why didn’t you tell me you liked to go to spas?” Weiss asked, tilting her head slightly and removing one of the cucumbers from her eyes.

“You never asked,” he pointed out, and Weiss looked at him before nodding. She then placed the cucumber back on her eye and stared upwards, letting warm water wash over her hair while also enjoying the sensation of her head getting massaged.

“Yeah, Jauney here has great tastes in this kind of stuff,” Nora declared as she sat in another recliner, her face also covered in a green mask while she herself was eating cucumber slices. “First thing he did when he became leader was take us to one. Called it ‘team-bonding’. I knew then and there he was the best leader ever.”

“Wait, you guys have been going to these places and you never invited me?” Yang asked with a smile on her face. When her back popped once again, she sighed in relief before looking at Jaune. “Vomit Boy, you aren’t allowed to go to one without telling me, you understand?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Jaune mock-saluted her, and Yang chuckled.

“And to think, Garfield and Victor chose to sit this out,” Pyrrha mentioned while feeling her joints getting much needed relief.

“They’re missing out,” Raven declared, and the group collectively nodded.

* * *

 

“Alright, Ember Celica Upgrade Project, test forty-nine,” Victor said into the camera, holding a replica of Ember Celica in his hands. Both teams had given him permission to upgrade their weapons after he had identified some areas they could be improved following Control Freak’s latest rampage. They had all agreed to let him test some new ideas, although Ruby forced Weiss to make a contract to guarantee that he would not harm Crescent Rose in any way.

He was actually impressed at how quickly the heiress had managed to write it up, with little to no loopholes to exploit. Not that he would have if there were any.

“As requested by Yang, I’ve added a select fire capability to Ember Celica, capable of firing a rubber slug or rocket to assist in long range or heavy combat. Please see tests twenty to forty for progress on that functionality. I’ve also taken the liberty of designing a grappling hook functionality to assist in mobility. Current plan is to include functionality into projects White Knight, Crimson Guardian, Red Reaper, Jade Lotus, Pink Lightning, Nightshade, Golden Dragon and Snow White.”

Victor emphasized this added function by priming it, and a small grapnel appeared at the front of the gauntlet. Still in frame, Victor walked forward and looked up at a small perch, designated as the target area. The test would be a success if the grapple gun could safely bring him up. Given how the last few tests had either not pulled hard enough or, even worse, only pulled his arm forward while leaving his body behind, he wasn’t taking any chances.

He then took a deep breath and aimed at the perch, then fired the grappling hook. The hook latched onto the perch then, with a loud whirl, dragged him up. Victor analyzed the strength of the wire and the force being exerted on his arm, noting that it was within safety parameters but still on the high scale. He frowned at that, even though he safely landed on the perch. Jumping down to the floor below, he removed the gauntlet from his arm and looked into the camera.

“Test was a success; however, bodily exertion was on the high end. Going to work on reducing the stress.”

With a final nod, he shut off the camera, then went back to the work bench. Truth be told, he knew Yang would be fine with the grappling hook as it was now, but he himself would not be satisfied until it was as close to perfect as possible. Taking that in mind, he sat back down and began to refine once again, only stopping when he heard the dull sound of thunder.

“Hmm, must be raining,” he muttered before settling back into his work. Before he could get too far, he heard the sound of knocking on the lab’s door, and with a groan Victor rose to his feet and walked over.

“Gar, what is it?”

“ _Um, dude? The remote broke and I can’t get the tv to switch channels,_ ” he said, his voice muffled by the thick steel. Rather than show sympathy, Victor groaned even louder.

“Gar, you know I love you, but I’m the middle of something important here.”

“ _I know that! But, it’ll only take, like, five minutes!_ ”

“No, Garfield. You’re going to have to just put up with it for now. I’ll fix it later.”

“ _Dude, the TV’s stuck on some old lady soap opera channel!_ ”

“Then read a book. I’m sure Raven’s suggested many to you.”

Ignoring Garfield’s continued cries of protest, Victor walked back to his bench, muted his audio receivers, then got back to work.

* * *

 

It was pouring now, as if someone had personally decided to make his day even worse. First, he had to tend to a kid’s party where he endured near constant abuse, only getting paid bare minimum for his efforts, just to get evicted from his home. Deep down, he knew the landlord had given him every opportunity, but he couldn’t help but feel only rage and resignation towards her.

Part of him also felt that he should have taken that pamphlet. After all, if the Wayne Foundation could help someone like Victor Fries, then surely they could help him. But his pride held him back.

Finding refuge under a bus station, the magician sighed deeply into his hands. “What am I going to do?”

“Indeed, that is the question, isn’t it?” he suddenly heard a man say, causing him to bolt upright in shock. Before him, standing under a red umbrella, was a man wearing priestly robes. His greying hair showed a sharp widow’s peak, and the tips were curved upward. They almost looked like horns, and the man felt something inside him stir in fright.

“Who…” he began under parched lips, “Who are you?”

“My name is Sebastian. I run a church nearby, and I couldn’t help but notice you wandering in the rain all downtrodden. What seems to be the trouble, my child?”

The man looked upon Sebastian with interest, feeling that the priest’s concern was genuine. Slowly, he felt himself relax and he let out a deep sigh.

“Everything, really. It’s…quite a bit,” he revealed, and Sebastian nodded.

“I see. Well then, how about we continue this inside my church? It’s not too far, and it is much warmer. Not to mention dry.”

“You…you sure? You must know that…”

“Oh, I know who you are, and what you’ve been. But, in the eyes of the Allfather, all can be forgiven. Come,” Sebastian declared while holding out his umbrella. Tentatively, the magician stepped forward and took it, and the two walked dryly under the heavy rain towards the church. It was a traditional church structure, Gothic-looking in design. He couldn’t help but feel awed at the edifice, with its blood-red stained glass windows obscuring the insides. When they finally entered, the two of them immediately noted the difference in temperature.

“I have to admit, that was quite the storm,” Sebastian noted while shaking dry his umbrella, then placing it onto an ornate holder. He beckoned the magician to follow him towards a nearby bench, and when the two sat down, Sebastian looked him in the eye.

“Now then, what’s been troubling you?”

After a moment’s hesitation, the man began to speak, and Sebastian listened intently.

* * *

 

“Well, I’m certainly refreshed!” Nora exclaimed as she exited the spa with a skip in her step. The others followed after her, all of them feeling more relaxed than they had in a long time.

“I can’t remember the last time I went to a spa,” Yang declared while admiring her smooth face. “Jaune, once again, nice choice.”

“Don’t mention it. I think all of us deserved that,” Jaune stated with a smile, and everyone couldn’t help but nod.

“Indeed! Ooh, we should take Garfield and Victor next time! I’m sure they would most enjoy it!” Koriand’r proclaimed, and Blake smiled at the Tamaranean’s energy.

“I bet they would.” Blake then looked up at the ceiling glass and frowned slightly, seeing that it was still raining quite heavily. “Great, looks like it’ll last for a while.”

“Eh, it’s not so bad,” M’gann pointed out. “At least we’re dry. Besides, I’m getting hungry anyway, so how about we get something to eat?”

All of them agreed to that, and so they made their way towards the food court. After selecting what they each wanted, they found a table able to accommodate all of them and sat down. Raven then quietly erected a spell around them, which briefly flickered purple before dissipating.

“Silencing spell. No one will be able to hear us,” she explained, and the others nodded.

“Hmm, useful,” Yang noted as she ate her burger. After a moment, she looked around at the others and drew their attention. “So, something’s been on my mind recently.”

“What is it, friend Yang?” Kori asked with genuine curiosity. Yang appreciated that quality in her, and she nodded.

“It’s just…” Yang sighed and shook her head. “Why Earth, exactly? Cy said that Mother Boxes are actually alive and fully sapient, capable of having their own opinions and desires.”

“I still can’t quite wrap my head around that, if I’m being honest,” Jaune admitted, and the other heroes all nodded in agreement.

“Victor doesn’t even understand them, and a Mother Box is what made up his current body,” Raven admitted, and Yang raised her arm towards the half-demon.

“Exactly my point. For the life of me, I can’t understand why the Mother Box chose Earth specifically. I mean…” Yang sighed again then looked at the three Titans in the eye. “Don’t get me wrong, I really like being on Earth, but I can’t help but wonder why Earth specifically and not on, say, New Genesis or, thank the Gods it didn’t, Apokolips.”

“We’re all lucky there,” M’gann noted, and the Remnantians felt a shiver rise up their spines. Moving past the feeling, M’gann leaned forward. “To be honest, I don’t have an answer for you. Maybe it chose Earth because of how similar it was to Remnant. You said it yourself that it’s surprising how alike the two planets were.”

“Yeah, I know that, but…” Yang sighed and shook her head. “Maybe I’m just overthinking it.”

“I wouldn’t say you’re overthinking it,” Blake spoke up, wiping away a fleck of bread from her lips. “We’ve all thought it.”

RWBY and JNPR all nodded at that. As Blake said, the mystery as to why they were brought to Earth did cross their minds from time to time. Before Yang could speak again, Ruby unexpectedly piped up with her own theory.

“Maybe it was just being nice, and it wanted to help us out while escaping from Brainiac’s lab?” Everyone was brought up short before chuckling at the possibility that the answer really was that simple. As Yang playfully tussled her sister’s hair, ignoring her indignant squawks, she felt her scroll vibrate in her pocket. She took it out and saw Victor’s name on the caller ID.

“Victor! How’s everything going?” she asked, placing the scroll on speaker. “You’re on speaker. Don’t worry, Raven silenced everything.”

“ _Figured she would_ ,” Victor stated with a chuckle. “ _Anyway, got some good news! I finished up the armor and weapon upgrades, and they’re waiting for you at the tower._ ”

“Really? That’s awesome, man. Thank you,” Jaune said with a smile, and they could hear Victor wave it off.

“ _No problem, man. Anything for my friends._ ”

“We’ll be there in a few minutes,” Ruby spoke up, only to slightly frown. “How’s my baby?”

“ _Gave her a few upgrades, but she’s perfectly intact, as required,_ ” Victor replied, and Ruby smiled.

“Alrighty then! We’ll be there in a few minutes!” she then declared, and Victor smiled.

“ _See you all in a bit. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to fix the remote again._ ”

With that, the scroll call turned off, and the Remnantians all looked at each other in anticipation. The Titans remained silent as they looked at them, Raven internally wondering what Garfield did to mess up the TV this time.

After quickly finishing their meals, the group speed walked towards the entrance of the mall they originally went through. The rain was still ongoing, and Raven was unwilling to potentially expose herself with such a blatant display of her magic. As such, after taking a moment to ready themselves, the group ran as fast as they could through the rain, getting absolutely soaked in the process. It was only thanks to their enhanced speed or flying capabilities that they were able to reach the alleyway they originally teleported in from, and the group quickly placed themselves beneath a small overhanging roof.

“Are you sure we had to go here?” Blake asked, trying to wipe away the water.

“Yes,” Raven admitted, slightly disgruntled. “Doesn’t mean I like it.”

“ _Great…_ ” the Faunus muttered, and the group continued to try and dry themselves off while Raven worked to cast the spell, only to suddenly stop. The others stopped as well as they heard the sound of approaching footsteps walking towards them, and when they turned towards the source they saw a trio of men wearing heavy jackets and jeans, their hands in their coat pockets and eyeing them dangerously.

“Hello, there,” the lead man said as they walked under the roof, “Nice weather we’re having today, aren’t we?”

“It’s absolutely dreadful,” Weiss corrected, staring at the men warily. All of the heroes were, especially when the men chuckled.

“Yeah, you could say that.” The three went silent once again, and an awkward silence fell between them.

“Well…” Ruby began, “we’ll get out of your guys’ hair.” Before they could even take a step, the men brandished pistols and aimed at the group, stopping them in their tracks.

“Nah uh,” the lead thug proclaimed, gesturing towards Koriand’r’s purse, “not until you ladies empty your purses.”

Judging by the look on his face, he was anticipating the young men and women to comply fearfully, so when they did nothing he got angry and confused.

“I said give me your money!” he again ordered, and the teenagers merely looked at each other then back at him.

“Oh wait guys, I recognize what they’re trying to do this time!” Ruby announced with her finger proudly raised into the air, “They’re robbing us!”

At her declaration, the now thoroughly exasperated criminal aimed his pistol at her angrily.

“Yes! Of course this is a robbery, and if you all don’t give us your money, this bitch is going to-!”

He never got to finish his sentence before a yellow blur slammed into him, sending him flying into a brick wall and knocking both the pistol out of his hand and the breath from his lungs. In a daze, he saw his two compatriots held down by their would-be victims, and with horror he realized one was being held off the ground by the tanned woman, her eyes now glowing green, and the other was pinned to the ground with shadowy tendrils. When the blonde walked up to him, her lilac eyes now red and cracking her knuckles, he suddenly realized exactly whom they just tried to rob.

“Oh, shit…” he muttered fearfully as Yang picked him up by his collar and looked him in the eye.

“’Oh, shit’ indeed, my friend,” she echoed back, tightening her grip. “You see, buddy, I was only going to give you a black eye for your troubles, teach you not to do this again, but then you had to go and point a pistol at my sister and call her a bitch. That’s just not going to fly. At. All.”

Yang pulled the man closer to her face with each word, and by now the man was trembling at the angry Titan holding him up.

“…Please don’t hurt me…” he begged, and Yang seemed to think for a moment.

“Hmm… Nah uh…”

Before he could even scream, Yang threw a fist into his face, breaking his nose and shattering a few teeth. He fell to the ground with a groan, and Yang then unceremoniously picked him up off the ground and dumped him into a nearby dumpster. She then held the lid open for Starfire and Raven to throw their criminals into the receptacle as if they were playing basketball. Raven then created a padlock with chains that surrounded the dumpster, and when it was all done the group looked towards it with disdain.

“Idiots…” Weiss muttered as Starfire floated towards the cannister.

“I must give these men to the police,” the Tamaranean proclaimed, and M’gann nodded.

“Let me just wipe their memories of our civilian appearance real quick,” she told her as she walked through the rain, no longer keeping her form solid and allowing the raindrops to harmlessly pass through her. She then stuck her hands through the metal and concentrated. A moment later, she pulled her arms back then nodded.

“Thank you, M’gann,” Starfire said, and M’gann nodded.

“Don’t mention it,” she replied. “We’ll meet you back at the tower.”

Starfire nodded, then grabbed the dumpster and flew off towards the nearest precinct. As M’gann walked back, she noticed a look on Ruby’s face, and immediately knew what she was worried about.

“Don’t worry, they won’t suffer any lasting harm. I didn’t reach far enough to hurt them,” M’gann reassured the young girl, and Ruby sighed in relief.

“Oh, that’s good.” Part of Ruby’s mind wondered about the ‘far enough’ comment, but decided to just drop the subject matter. A moment later, Raven cast the spell and teleported them back to Titans Tower’s living room, simultaneously drying themselves in the process.

“Okay, let’s…” Yang started, only to trail off when they noticed that Garfield was still on the couch. By itself, that was not an uncommon occurrence, but the fact that he was deeply reading a book certainly wasn’t. For her part, Raven seemed absolutely giddy.

“Oh, hello Garfield!” Ruby proclaimed with a smile, and he turned his attention away from the book and towards them, then nodded.

“Hey, guys! Glad to see you’re back. Where’s Star?”

“Some idiots tried to rob us. She’s taking them to the police now,” Weiss explained, and Garfield cringed.

“Ooh, that must have hurt. For them, I mean. Anyway, Raven? Do you mind explaining this book to me? I can’t make heads or tails of it.”

“Of course,” Raven replied while floating next to him. The Beast Boy made a spot for her next to him on the couch, and began to ask her a series of questions. Unwilling to break up the moment, RWBY and JNPR silently left with M’gann, heading down the stairwell and towards Cyborg’s lab.

“By the way, why were you reading this book?” Raven asked, and Garfield shivered.

“The TV broke, and I didn’t want to watch a black and white soap opera.”

Raven stared at him for a moment, then shrugged. “It’s what I figured, to be honest.”

“Oh, you know me so well.”

“Sometimes, I wish I didn’t,” Raven joked back, and the two friends continued as usual from there.

* * *

 

Victor was waiting for them in front of his lab, a wide smile on his face. RWBY and JNPR couldn’t help but smile back, and let Cyborg lead them inside.

“It took a lot of blood, sweat, and oil, but I’m finally satisfied with what you guys are getting. Triple Kevlar weave, carbon nanotube fibers, ballistics-grade and heat-resistant ceramics, titanium-alloy plating, the whole package,” he declared and gestured towards a large bench, several suitcases marked with their individual symbols lying on top. Quickly, the Huntsmen and Huntresses walked over and grabbed their cases just as Garfield, Raven, and M’gann joined them.

“Well, go ahead! Try them on,” the Martian insisted, and the eight teenagers took the opportunity to go into some nearby dressing rooms Victor had set up for that express purpose.

“Ooh, this is so cool!” Ruby shouted excitedly while the others gasped in agreement. Victor smiled proudly at their declarations while he and the other Titans stood in place.

“Oh, by the way, sis,” Garfield began, drawing her attention. “Dick called while you guys were out. He’ll be arriving sometime tomorrow.”

“Ooh, he is? Kori’s going to be so excited.”

Victor smiled at the news, and even Raven let out a small grin. The looks on their faces quickly changed when the first of the doors opened, revealing Ruby dressed in her new superhero attire.

“Damn, girl. You look _good_ ,” Garfield noted, and Ruby blushed at the praise. Were it not for the hooded cowl covering her face, they might have been able to see it.

Batman, when he had designed all of their new outfits and armors, had used their Hunting outfits as a basis. Ruby’s was no exception, looking like a lightly armored version of her original combat skirt. Along the waist were several pouches, meant to contain a wide variety of tools and specialized rounds, while the buckle of her utility belt showed her rose symbol for all to see. The armor itself was a dark red in color overlaying a black undersuit, the two colors complementing each other. Ruby’s hood, originally let down, was now pulled up over her head. On the inside of the hood was a black cowl that completely covered the upper half of her face, even hiding her recognizable silver eyes behind a pair of lenses embedded into the cowl. Her cape also sported substantial improvements, with several long fibers running down its length. The center of her armor was a silver plate covering her chest and going down to the center of her waist, with crisscrossing crimson engravings of thorny vines reminiscent of the straps of her usual corset breaking up the otherwise blank surface, and her arms were covered in red and black gauntlets.

“Victor, my man!” Yang proclaimed as she strutted out of her dressing room, wearing her new attire. Like Ruby’s, it was reminiscent of what she had worn before, wearing a yellow jacket with brown trim over a brown undersuit. Her once bare upper legs were now covered in yellow and brown trimmed armored coverings, and a yellow domino mask hid her eyes. Pouches lined her waist, and the symbol of a burning heart was embossed in the center-left of her belt.

Blake was the next one to exit, her new uniform being a lightly armored black catsuit with a dark purple iridescent texture that shifted in the light to break up her outline, and a white undersuit showing along the chest and waist. Like Ruby, she too sported a much more substantial mask, one that could cover the bottom half of her face while leaving the top of her head exposed had she chosen to pull it up. Instead of a bow, her ears were now fully exposed. Resting on her forehead were a pair of black goggles, and judging by the look on her face, she was pleased with the results.

Weiss and Ren exited their dressing rooms at the same time. Like Ruby, she too wore an armored version of her combat skirt, now a pure white with a faint blue hue. A single pouch containing a wide variety of various substances and fuels sat on her left side, while her back bore the Schnee logo for all to see. Her chest was covered in a white armor plate, segmented in areas to provide greater mobility, as were her arms and legs.

Ren, meanwhile, had a much more substantial change to his attire. He was wearing a green and black overcoat, the inside layer a bright magenta, and the chest was covered in a green armored plate with gold trim. His shoulders were covered in layered pauldrons, each layer ending in a gold edge before reaching his armored sleeves, the end of which was colored in magenta. The area around his elbows was covered in a black undersuit, his forearms were enclosed in green and black gauntlets, the sides of which lined with the same hooked parrying blades that the Bat family liked to use, and his knuckles were studded with gold emplacements. Gold colored ceramic plates covered his waist, and his legs were covered by green, black, and gold colored shin guards and boots. The symbol of a lotus sat in the middle of his waist, and a green domino mask covered his eyes.

Pyrrha, when she finally exited her dressing room, looked as though she had stepped straight out of Themyscira. It appeared Batman had taken her original aesthetic, which had coincidentally looked similar to ancient Greece, and combined it with the Amazons. Gold and bronze-colored plating now covered much of her body, with a substantial increase in protection over the chest. In her hands was a Corinthian-style hoplite helmet, the center of which appeared to be able to slide into the cheek guards on the sides, and the back contained a hole through which her hair could flow out like a scarlet plume. Her red sash was still wrapped around her waist, covering a single pouch containing all of her supplies, and she eagerly joined the group as they all inspected each other.

“I think I can see what he went with. You look good,” Ruby told her, and Pyrrha smiled while slightly brushing.

“Yes, although it is heavier than what I’m used to,” she admitted.

“Yeah, I’ve been meaning to ask about that. Why’d Batman give us more armor? He knows we have Aura, right?” Yang asked, and Victor smiled slightly and shook his head.

“He said, and I quote, ‘for when their Aura breaks,’” he explained, emphasizing the ‘when’. Yang and the others thought for a moment, then nodded after remembering the few times their Aura had broken.

“Well, I now know how Jauney feels! This armor ain’t half bad!” Nora proclaimed as she jumped out of her dressing room. Like Yang, she too was wearing an armored jacket, one that was black and pink-trimmed while covering a white undersuit. The back of her jacket was emblazoned with her symbol, a pink circle with a white hammer jutting into its center, itself having a pink lightning bolt crossing through it. Her waist was lined with a pink skirt, while her legs were covered in white armored leggings that extended into her black boots. Nora was wearing her pink domino mask with pride, and soon everyone was watching Jaune’s door with anticipation.

After a few more moments of waiting, Pyrrha got concerned and walked over, knocking on the door gently. “Jaune, you okay?”

“I, uh…” Jaune awkwardly started, the sound of grunted straining following suit. After a moment, he sighed in defeat. “I’m stuck. Help me, please?”

Pyrrha chuckled before gently opening the door, Jaune allowing her entry. A moment later, the sound of heavy plating being properly inserted and attached followed, as well as a sigh of relief from the boy.

“Thanks, Pyr,” Jaune said as Pyrrha exited the room.

“Don’t mention it. Now, show everyone,” she insisted, and soon enough Jaune exited his room. Almost immediately, the others could see exactly what Batman had been going for. Gone was the single chest plate, instead replaced by full set of plate armor lined with gold trim. In his hands was a helmet with a slit-visor that appeared to lift upwards to expose his face, should he desire to do so. Judging by the look on his face and his turning of his head to get a better look at himself, he was greatly pleased with the results.

“Well, Vomit Boy, you definitely give off the White Knight vibe now,” Yang stated while flashing a thumbs up, and Jaune blushed while rubbing the back of his head. The group then converged together, taking the time to more closely inspect their new attires while testing out their range of movement. To their relief, they found that their armor did nothing to constrain them, and they gave Victor satisfied smiles.

“Thanks, man,” Jaune said, and Victor nodded.

“Don’t worry about it,” Victor replied, then smiled. “But, I should have you guys know. That armor does more than just protect you. Want to see?”

Everyone nodded excitedly, giving him a resounding ‘yes’.

* * *

 

“And then you found me. You know the rest,” the man finished telling his tale to the priest, who nodded in understanding.

“I see,” Sebastian murmured while rubbing his chin.

“You see? _You see?_ ” The man was incredulous, and before he could stop himself, he began to rant. “My life is over. I can’t find work, I can’t get a home, I have no money, I have _nothing_. All because I screwed up!”

“I wouldn’t say that,” Sebastian interjected, and the magician laughed.

“No, I most certainly did. I was the one who found the wand and hat and used it when everything told me not to. When the Titans finally stopped me, instead of reforming I kept going back to it.”

“Why did you go back to the hat and wand?” Sebastian suddenly asked, catching the man off-guard.

“What does that have to-?”

“Humor me, please,” the priest interrupted, a serious look on his face. “Why did you go back to the hat and wand, even though you knew they changed you?”

The man stumbled, trying to find the words, before sighing. “I… I don’t…”

“Please, my child. Nothing you say will cause my opinion of you to change, and your secret is safe with me.”

The man sighed again, rubbing the back of his head and closing his eyes before finally speaking. “I… I guess I kept going back to them because they made… They made me feel powerful.”

“Powerful? How so?”

“That I was in charge of my life for once,” he clarified. “My stage career was slowing down, forcing me to have to put up with snot-nosed kids, doing requests in half-baked carnivals in the middle of nowhere. I was Mumbo the Magnificent, someone who was worthy of the greatest stages in the world, but instead I was here.”

“You felt you deserved more?”

“Yes! I—” the magician took a deep breath then shook his head. “Sorry, I know its selfish, but…”

“I wouldn’t say it’s selfish at all,” Sebastian suddenly declared, much to the man’s shock.

“I… What are you talking about? Of course it was selfish?”

“Wanting to improve your lot in life is selfish? Well then, I suppose most people are as well, but no one faults them for that.”

“It’s not that I wanted to improve myself, it’s that I became a criminal to do it! I allowed the hat and wand to bring out my darker side, and it consumed me for years.”

“Your darker side, or your true self?” Sebastian quietly asked, and the magician suddenly felt very cold. A feeling in the back of his mind that he had been ignoring suddenly flared up, and he quietly shuffled slightly back.

“What are you talking about?” he asked, suspecting that the seemingly kindly priest was not just talking about him.

Sebastian smiled, looking much more sinister now than he did just moments ago, and began to explain, “My flock believe that the nature of man is one of darkness. A desire for power and dominion. So, one wanting to pursue that is not inherently wrong.”

“Even if it comes at the expense of others?”

“Even then,” Sebastian proclaimed, and with a start the magician finally realized exactly who he was talking to. Now fearful, he rose to his feet and backed away.

“You’re not a priest…” he accused while pointing a shaking finger at the man before him, who was still sitting down. “You’re Brother Blood… Leader of the Cult of Blood…”

“Hmm, I wouldn’t say we’re a cult,” Brother Blood countered while gesturing towards a group of men previously unseen, who were blocking the entrance out of the church and trapping the magician.

“You…” The man could barely speak at this point, and Brother Blood chuckled.

“Why are you afraid? None of us are going to hurt you,” he said, but the magician was skeptical.

“You… I’ve heard rumors…”

“And what might those be?” Blood asked, and the man gulped loudly.

“That… That you worship Trigon the Terrible and do…things for him…”

“Ahh, I see…” Brother Blood closed his eyes and nodded to himself. “All lies and slander, I assure you. What I preach is nothing but salvation for my followers, and I would never dream of doing something like that.”

“I… I have to go now…” the man declared, and tried to move towards the entrance only to stop when the red-cloaked cultists barred his exit. Brother Blood then rose to his feet and stepped forward, his frame towering over the terrified magician. When the cult leader smiled and placed his hand reassuringly on his shoulder, the man jumped slightly.

“There, there,” Brother Blood calmed him while patting his shoulder. “None of us are going to hurt you. I simply wanted to help, but now I am certain my presence is harming your state of mind. For that, I apologize deeply. I also apologize for my followers. They can be quite zealous at times.”

The cultists said nothing, and when Brother Blood gestured towards them yet again, they split apart from barring the door. Almost immediately, the man sprinted past them and threw the doors wide open, spilling onto the rain-soaked streets without a care. He briefly stumbled then fell to the pavement, all the while Brother Blood watched him from the comfort of his church.

“Farewell, Mumbo.  Please, if you ever feel the need for guidance, know that I will be here. Even if you don’t, I encourage you to follow your heart’s desire.”

The magician said nothing as he hastily got to his feet and ran as fast as he could, never once feeling Brother Blood’s eyes leave him.

* * *

 

As Victor had described, there were many improvements to their weapons and armor since they’d last used them a few days before. For one, everyone, with the exception of Yang who had hers embedded into Ember Celica or Blake, who simply had Gambol Shroud’s get improved, was given a grappling hook in order to extend their mobility. Their masks or helmets also contained a sophisticated electronics suite that seemed to integrate everything their scrolls did and much more into a heads-up display. In the case of Jaune and Pyrrha, their helmets also integrated a rebreather while the others were simply given separate masks to store in their pouches. At the same time, Victor had also created communicators that integrated with said electronics suites, which were small enough to fit into their ears.

There were also several additions more tailored to everyone’s specific needs. Nora’s armor contained built-in circuitry that could both absorb electricity from external sources to transfer into her body, while also having a series of batteries to store excess power for later use. Her own movements would even charge the batteries from the kinetic energy, giving her a much more readily available source of juice for her Semblance. Jaune had requested a stronger offensive modification for Crocea Mors, and so Victor had designed a mecha-shift that would merge the sword with the sheath to turn it into a two-handed claymore. Many other smaller upgrades were given to each of them.

Right now, however, they were currently focused on one improvement in particular.

“Ruby, get down here, now!” Yang insisted from the bottom of Titan’s Tower, the rain having finally dissipated.

“I WILL IN A SECOND!” Ruby shouted back from the roof, looking down on everyone with excited eyes.

“The normal way!”

“WHERE’S THE FUN IN THAT?!”

“Ruby, I swear if you jump off the building…” Weiss’s threat tailored off, preferring to let her young leader’s mind finish her thought. Unfortunately, Ruby seemed to disregard it entirely as she continued to stretch and ready herself.

“Do a flip!” Nora shouted up with a smile, causing the others to glare at her. Nora smiled shamelessly, especially once Ruby shouted back in affirmation.

“Yang, trust me. If she falls, Kori or I will catch her, okay?” M’gann insisted in a much calmer tone. Yang looked to retort, only to sigh and nod her head then look back up at Ruby.

“Okay, I can do this. I can do this…” Red Reaper muttered to herself over and over, trying to psyche herself up. Just because she was excited didn’t mean that she wasn’t a little bit nervous. Titans Tower was well over a hundred feet tall, after all. She then took a deep breath and stared out across the sea, the evening sun beginning to set over the horizon. She found it beautiful, and with one final breath, her expression hardened. She then ran out towards the edge as fast as she could, then leaped off the building while doing a front flip. For a moment, her momentum kept her going, but then gravity reasserted itself and she began to fall.

“Ruby!” Yang yelled out in worry as Ruby’s body began to flail. Kori prepared to fly after her, but Raven held out her hand and stopped her.

“Wait,” she insisted, and with great reluctance, Kori stayed where she was. They watched Ruby slowly right herself and pin her arms to her sides. Then, just before she reached the round, she spread them out wide. Her cape followed her arms and stayed rigid, turning into a glider that allowed her to bank over the rocks.

“WHOO!” Ruby cheered as she soared overhead, her friends cheering her on from below.

“Yeah, good job, Ruby!” Jaune called out with a big smile. Ruby looked back to smile at him as she glided across the open ocean, only for her to suddenly bank without warning from the movement and crash into the water with a surprised shriek. She somersaulted multiple times, skipping across the water like a rock before skidding to a halt and sinking beneath the waves.

“Ooh,” the others winced at the impact. For a moment they stared at the disturbed water where Ruby had landed, sighing in relief when her head finally poked over the water.

“THAT WAS SO COOL! LET’S DO IT AGAIN!”

* * *

 

The magician didn’t know how long he had been running. His legs were burning, but he refused to let himself care. Right now, he was running purely on flight instinct, knowing that he had to get as far away from that place as he possibly could.

“OOF!” he grunted as he slipped on a puddle and fell to the ground, rolling to a stop and launching his bag away from him. Groaning in slight pain, he rubbed his sore ankle then saw how his bag, his last material possessions on Earth, was crumpled against the brick alley wall. He slowly got to his feet, then limped over to grab it.

“Please tell me nothing got damaged…” he begged to himself as he opened his bag. He ruffled through his clothes and possessions and inspected each of them, slowly growing more and more relieved at each non-damaged item.

When his hands felt a wand and hat in there, he suddenly felt very cold. Slowly, he lifted them out and saw that they were indeed the very same magic hat and wand he had found all those years ago.

“GAGH!” he shouted as he threw the objects down the alley, backing into the wall when they landed. The hat landed bottom side up, while the wand leaned against the hat. The magician stared at both items, then with a scowl he got to his feet and prepared to walk off.

“Damn that bastard. He must have found them and put them in…” he muttered as he prepared to exit the alley, only to slowly pause. Despite a loud part of his mind telling him not to turn around, he slowly did and stared at the magical items. His mind went back to what Brother Blood had told him, that what he did wasn’t wrong and that it was instead just and right. A deep part of him agreed with that.

“No, I shouldn’t,” he told himself and tried to turn away, but he found that he couldn’t. Rather, that he didn’t want to. Part of his mind began proclaiming that what Blood had said was right, that he wasn’t the problem. He didn’t wrong the world, rather the world wronged him. It wasn’t his fault he couldn’t find work anymore, it wasn’t his fault any money he did earn had to be used to keep himself fed and clothed, not leaving any for rent. No, he wasn’t the problem here. It was everyone else.

Before he knew it, the magician held the hat and wand in his hands once again. He inspected them, seeing how they were unblemished. The part of his mind screaming to throw them away was growing fainter and fainter, yet it still slowed him slightly. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the magician placed the hat on his head.

The transformation was sudden. His outfit changed into that of a stage magician, a black tuxedo with a red collar over a white shirt, and a black bow tie wrapped around his neck. His skin turned a faint blue, and his glasses turned into a black domino mask that completely obscured his eyes.

Mumbo Jumbo looked at himself for a long time, feeling the power that flowed through him, and he laughed.

[~][~]


	16. Hocus Pocus and Alakazam

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mumbo Jumbo, freshly corrupted by his magic wand and hat, goes on a crime spree, and teams RWBY/JNPR, and the Titans mobilize to take him down. Meanwhile, Brother Blood schemes and plots in the background, working towards a dark and sinister goal.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 12: Hocus Pocus and Alakazam **

* * *

 

It was nighttime when the alarm blared. The young heroes were in the midst of a fighting game tournament when they were interrupted, but once they received word of exactly what had occurred all thoughts of Kombat were extinguished. After getting into their super-suits, they hopped into the T-Car and drove as fast as they could towards the scene of the incident, vehicles moving out of the way as they would with other emergency vehicles. By the time they arrived, the JPD had already cordoned off the run-down apartment complex with yellow police tape and were moving spectators away.

The police offered no such resistance to the Titans however as they, along with RWBY and JNPR, stepped out of the T-Car and entered the building. Inside were a few police officers inspecting the area, including piles of flowers, streamers, and an assortment of various other stage items that seemed to be scattered across the entire building. One of the officers turned to face the heroes, rubbing his hand down his bearded face before nodding at them.

“Titans,” the lead officer greeted the team.

Cyborg nodded in response. “Officer. Mind explaining the situation more clearly?”

The officer sighed deeply while rubbing his bald head, “It’s a damn mess, is what it is. We got the call roughly half an hour ago about an assault. The perp had been long gone by the time we arrived, but the landlord here was…” He looked around and frowned deeply. “We couldn’t find her. Right now, we’re assuming it’s a kidnapping.”

“You think a villain did this?” Weiss suggested, and the officer nodded.

“There’s only two people I know who would assault a person with flowers, and one of them is locked up in Arkham. So yeah, I’m pretty certain.”

M’gann nodded, and she and the others walked inside the building, adding, “We’ll take it from here, officer,” as they walked past. The officer, who Jaune just now noticed had the name ‘Miguel Rodriquez’, nodded back.

“Good. I’ll let you all take over. Not about to let my boys get taken out by a damn supervillain,” Miguel stated before ushering his men out of the building, many with reluctant grumbles.

Ruby watched them go with sympathy. She could understand just why many of the officers would be reluctant to hand over the investigation. After all, this was supposed to be their job. However, the reality of the situation meant that normal police officers trying to directly apprehend a supervillain could potentially turn deadly, hence why most cities simply let the local superheroes apprehend them. The only major exceptions, of course, were Gotham City and Metropolis. Gotham due to the sheer need and Metropolis due to having the most advanced police force in the country. Putting those thoughts aside for the moment, Ruby then turned her attention towards her friends, who had already begun to survey the area more closely.

Cyborg had already accessed the building’s security cameras while Beast Boy had turned into a bloodhound and begun to sniff around. Using their masks’ built in visualization software, Blake and Ren had begun to comb for fingerprints while the others were investigating the signs of damage along the walls and floors. Yang, Jaune, and Nora had gone upstairs with Pyrrha, following a trail of flowers and feathers while the eyes of their masks and helmets glowed. Raven, suspecting who the culprit was, had begun to scan for magical signatures while M’gann and Starfire continued to inspect the debris around them.

They checked each and every room for any scraps of evidence, eventually joining their friends upstairs and going into the suspect’s room. Yellow police tape crossed the door in an ‘X’ pattern. Carefully opening the door, they were greeted by the sight of a seemingly inconspicuous room, albeit one that had had extensive forensic work inside of it. Raven quickly began to scry the room for any signs of magical activity. Jaune, meanwhile, rubbed the back of his helmet and sighed deeply.

“I couldn’t find a single trace of her anywhere,” Ruby noted sadly while Yang clenched her fist tightly.

“So, what do we got?” Jaune asked. “I read some reports on your guys’ villains a few days ago, but I want to know what you guys think. You know him more than I do.”

“Security cameras broke down during the assault,” Cyborg replied while displaying an image of a strange looking magician entering the building via hologram, projected from his eye onto the nearby wall, “but I was able to isolate this image. Sure looks like him.”

“Could be a copycat,” Weiss pointed out, playing devil’s advocate. “Police records show he hasn’t had an arrest in the past two years, and none of the fingerprints Jade Lotus and Nightshade found match his.”

“To be fair,” Ren interjected, “he was wearing gloves. But, we did find some fiber strands that matched previous pairs he wore.”

“Anyone can buy those gloves. Even if that wasn’t the case, why now? Why her?” Weiss then turned to face Raven, who had her eyes closed and her left hand pressed against her temple. Her right hand was encased in a purple aura as she slowly waved it around, scanning the area. “Raven, what do you see?”

Raven kept her eyes closed as she continued to survey for a few more moments before stopping. She then turned around to face the others, and a worried look briefly crossed her face before returning to her normal stoic expression.

“I’m detecting hints of magic here, mostly downstairs where the attack occurred. The attacker likely moved in here for a brief stop before finally leaving,” she revealed, and Weiss couldn’t help but let out a groan. “I think its safe to assume Officer Rodriquez’s suspicions were correct.”

“Great, just perfect…” Beast Boy groaned. “Mumbo’s back in town.”

“I read about him,” Yang stated. “He’s a magician who cracked, right?”

“Close,” M’gann followed, drawing both RWBY and JNPR’s attention towards her, “Mumbo used to be a stage magician who worked in a small time traveling circus. Made a decent living, but ended up getting a major case of ‘small name, big ego’. Was harmless for the most part, if only a little eccentric, but then…”

“He got his hands on an actual magic wand and hat, right?” Jaune said, and Raven nodded.

“We don’t know how he got ahold of it, or where it even came from, but the wand changed him on a fundamental level,” Raven continued, “Made the cheap parlor tricks he called ‘magic’ into _actual_ magic. Granted, he couldn’t do the type of magic I can do, only limited to real versions of what he already did, but magic nonetheless. At first, he used it to simply enhance what he was already doing, but he quickly lost his mind and started using his newfound powers to commit crimes.”

“That’s how we ended up fighting,” Starfire stated, “although it was mostly to just get the wand away from him. We eventually did, but in the end, the event nearly destroyed his life.”

“Lost his job, lost his home, everything. We tried to help him, but he’s so stubborn that he refused all of our attempts. He’s relapsed every so often since then, and we’ve had to put him down every time. It’s more sad than anything.” Cyborg sighed and shook his head. “In any case, we have to stop him before he hurts anyone else.”

“Any suggestions there?” Blake asked while loading Gambol Shroud.

“Just one: get that hat and wand away from him.”

The others all nodded at that. From what they had read about the man, despite his silly appearance the  Titans had never once managed to defeat him through pure strength alone. It was only by destroying his wand that they’d been able to revert him back to his normal form and thus defeat him. It was kind of like Control Freak in a way, albeit from a completely different genre. The group checked their equipment then, with a silent nod, split off into groups to cover more ground. Cyborg had given them likely areas to stake out, and they could only hope they would find Mumbo in time before someone else got hurt.

* * *

 

It was times like these that Dick Grayson really regretted leaving Jump City. Sure, the villains there were usually nothing like the ones he just finished dealing with in Gotham, but that didn’t mean nothing bad could happen. Having a woman potentially get kidnapped by a resurgent supervillain certainly qualified as a ‘bad situation.’

“ _We’re currently trying to track Mumbo down,_ ” Starfire detailed into Dick’s communicator, and the young adult sighed.

“Dammit. Any luck so far?”

“ _Friend Cyborg is looking for him now, but nothing yet. He’s actually getting kind of frustrated._ ” Starfire paused at that, and Dick could feel her sense of empathy towards their friend. “ _But, don’t you worry! I’m certain he’ll show up soon! You know Mumbo.”_

“He always was the showman.” Dick frowned and narrowed his eyes. “Kori, you and the others be careful. I’ll be there in a few hours.”

“ _Don’t worry, I’ll be fine. We’ll all be._ ”

With that final statement, Starfire hung up and Dick shut off his communicator. Leaning forward on his motorcycle, he zipped past the traffic as he continued to make his way to Jump City. He passed by a green navigation sign, telling him that he was 60 miles from Los Angeles, 40 miles from San Diego, and 120 miles from Jump City. Frowning, Dick throttled his motorcycle even more while briefly glancing towards the metal briefcase strapped to his bike. It contained his suit, and something told him he would likely have to use it.

“Out of the frying pan, and into the fire. Life certainly isn’t boring.”

* * *

 

In order to cover more ground, the Titans and RWBYJNPR had decided that splitting into smaller teams would be beneficial. Starfire and M’gann split off with team RWBY while Cyborg, Raven, and Beast Boy went with team JNPR. At the moment RWBY, Starfire, and M’gann were staking out a nearby bank, standing on a rooftop across the street while looking around for any signs of suspicious activity. So far, there was none, but that didn’t mean they could afford to put their guards down.

“You guys see anything yet?” Ruby asked while looking through her mask’s internal binoculars and kneeling against the building’s edge. On the street below were a few pedestrians taking a nightly walk or run, but nothing out of the ordinary.

“Nothing,” Weiss replied while surveying the area. She then pressed her finger against her ear, activating the earpiece inserted inside, “White Knight, anything on your end?”

“ _Not a thing. Stopped a mugging though, so I got that going for me,_ ” Jaune answered in a slightly accomplished tone of voice. Weiss couldn’t help but smile at the declaration.

Jaune asked for an update in turn, “ _What about you guys? Find anything?_ ”

“Same as you. Nightshade tapped into the police scanner and Miss Martian is psychically reaching out. If we find anything, we’ll let you know.”

“ _Sounds good. Keep us posted. White Knight out._ ” Jaune’s voice cut off with a click, and Weiss pulled her hand away. Standing up, she took one last glance around the area before turning back to face the others. They, too, had begun to set out and moments later they were making their way across the rooftops. M’gann and Starfire casually flew over everything while the others had to make do with running. Ruby, at the very least, was taking the opportunity to practice gliding with her new cape as she leaped across the alleyways, but each glide was still unrefined and shaky.

“Oof!” Ruby grunted as she tripped against a rooftop, failing to stick her landing after a faltering glide. Yang, using her new grappling hooks, made her way over to her sister and helped Ruby to her feet. The two sisters then continued their run, watching as Weiss gracefully ran across platform glyphs and Blake bounded from roof to roof. When they finally reached their next site, the group stopped and assembled in various locations, maintaining a constant view of their environment as they searched for Mumbo.

“How long do you guys usually do this?” Yang asked while quickly inspecting Ember Celica.

“Couple hours, at least,” M’gann said, feeling the impatience in Yang’s mind. With a smile, she gently shook her head. “I know, but right now we have to be patient. He’ll turn up, and when he does we’ll be ready.”

“I know. Doesn’t mean I have to like it. However,” Yang then developed a sly grin as she turned to face Weiss, “this _is_ a prime opportunity to finally solve a little pesky problem for our group.”

Weiss groaned, knowing exactly where Yang was going. Judging by the looks on Blake’s and Ruby’s faces, so did they.

“I know, I know. I still need to come up with a name,” Weiss began, and Ruby shook her head.

“It’s been over a week,” she pointed out, and Weiss stared pointedly at her leader in slight frustration.

“You think I don’t know that?”

“She does have a point. Your lack of a name has been making things a little more difficult,” Blake chimed in, remembering how they’d been purposefully leaving out any traces of Weiss’ name over the radio.

“Coming up with a name is hard, okay?” Weiss threw up her hands in frustration. “Especially in my case.”

“What are you talking about?” Yang asked with a cocked head, and Weiss narrowed her eyes at her. When Weiss refused to speak, Yang put her hands on her hips and leaned forward. “Well?”

Weiss waited for a moment then sighed and hung her head, before muttering quietly, “…he stole my color…”

Although the others couldn’t quite hear what she said, Blake did, and she couldn’t help but groan. “Seriously? ‘He stole your color’?”

Recognizing instantly what Blake was referring to, Yang and Ruby looked at Weiss with a look that screamed ‘really?’. Weiss, meanwhile, blushed slightly and glared at the Faunus.

“Well, he did! My hair is white, my clothes are white, my Aura is white, everything about me is white. Yet because he chose white first, now I can’t use that color without being derivative.”

“That’s your fault, really,” Blake pointed out, causing Weiss to stare at her in shock and Yang to quickly suppress a chuckle. “Seriously. We were all brainstorming ideas back then. Sure, he chose White Knight before you could come up with an idea, but if you hadn’t been so recalcitrant about the whole thing and simply come up with one with your color I’m sure he would have given it to you.”

“Yeah, first come, first serve,” Ruby chimed in. M’gann and Starfire, standing off in the background, remained quiet as they watched the situation unfold with no small amount of amusement. The Tamaranean had a goofy grin on her face, and M’gann had to suppress giggles at the humorous scene.

Weiss prepared to retort, only for a suddenly cheerful Yang to put her finger to her ear. “Let’s ask him!” she stated.

“No, that is not-!” Weiss began, only for Yang’s voice to cut through everyone’s comms.

“Golden Dragon to White Knight,” Yang stated, pointedly looking at Weiss who stared right back.

“ _What’s up? Find anything?_ ” Jaune quickly replied. Weiss motioned for Yang to stop, but the brawler merely smiled and continued.

“Not yet. Wanted to ask you a question, actually.”

“ _Sure, we got time. What’s up?_ ”

“Remember when we all came up with our names before the Control Freak thing?”

“ _Yeah, what about it?_ ”

“If our resident mage had come up with hers back then and wanted to use the color white, what would you have done?”

“ _I’d have come up with a different name, obviously. Why?_ ” Jaune immediately answered, and Yang pointedly looked at Weiss with triumph. Weiss stared in slight annoyance at the brawler and crossed her arms, then looked away in an embarrassed huff.

“Nothing, just curious. I’ll tell you more later,” she answered. They could feel the confusion on Jaune’s end as a pause ensued, then after a few more seconds he began to speak once more.

“ _…Okay…? I’ll talk to you guys later, I guess…_ ” Jaune once again clicked off the comms, and a moment later the three girls laughed while Weiss stewed.

* * *

 

“Geez, that was a weird conversation,” Jaune noted as he went back to what he was doing before. His team, Beast Boy, Cyborg, and Raven were currently overlooking a bank, Raven scrying the area for any magical signatures.

“What did they want?” Nora asked, Magnhild currently collapsed and strapped to her lower back.

“They wanted to know whether or not I’d have chosen a different color if someone else wanted it,” he answered. It was obvious to all parties involved that the person in question was Weiss, but for the life of him he couldn’t understand why the subject had come up in the first place.

Pyrrha, from the confused look on her face, evidently agreed. “Why’d they ask that?”

“No idea.” Jaune shrugged.

“Maybe she was annoyed you stole her color?” Nora suggested, only for Jaune to shake his head.

“No way. She’s way too mature for something as petty as that.” The others thought about it for a few moments more before shrugging, deciding it wasn’t worth pursuing any further.

“In any case, we should—” Ren started, only for a loud explosion to ring out a few blocks from their position. Instinctively, the heroes threw themselves to the ground and felt the small shockwave roll over them. As it passed by, the sounds of shattering glass and blaring of car alarms came up from the streets, and a moment later the heroes jumped to their feet and began to race towards the site.

“Isn’t that the place we literally just left?!” Beast Boy shouted before turning into a hawk and flying next to Raven. Jaune quickly noticed that it was, but before he could tell the others Ren had already begun to speak into their comms.

“Explosion at Jump City Bank! Possibly Mumbo!” Ren shouted as he leaped from building to building.

“ _We saw it! On our way now!_ ” Ruby responded. Rather than reply, Ren focused on getting himself over to the building as fast as possible. When they arrived, they quickly noticed the large gaping hole in the side of the building, debris laying strewed across the bank’s floor. On the ground were a few security guards, tied up with large rings that appeared to be constricting them, and a lone night attendant was tied to her chair with a multi-colored ribbon of streamers over her mouth. Her eyes were frantic, and when she saw the assembled heroes rush inside she screamed as loud as she could, her voice muffled by the gag over her mouth. Before the heroes could get to her, several large bags filled with money were thrown from the blasted open bank vault, causing them to turn towards the entry and aim their weapons at the blue-skinned man waiting for them on the other side.

“Mumbo Jumbo,” Raven began with a snarl as she floated upwards, a purple aura covering her body. Jaune quickly glanced at his team and jerked his head to the side. Nodding back, Ren joined his leader while Nora and Pyrrha spread out to far sides of the room, their weapons never leaving Mumbo’s frame.

“Hello, Titans!” Mumbo cheerfully replied, his gestures far too animated in Jaune’s tastes. “And looks like you have some new recruits! Splendid!”

“Where is she?” Cyborg demanded, cutting through Mumbo’s bombastic greeting. The crazed magician laughed and wagged his finger.

“Ah-ah-ah! A magician never reveals his secrets. But,” Mumbo smiled wickedly as he pulled out a single card from his coat pocket, “I will say that I’ve always loved a captive audience.”

Jaune squinted his eyes, slightly confused as to why Mumbo would have pulled that particular card out, but when he zoomed in with his helmet’s optics he let out a disgusted gasp. The card itself was a Red Queen of Spades, which by itself wouldn’t have been alarming. The fact that the normal queen was replaced by the horrified visage of an overweight, middle-aged Hispanic woman was, and a quick look through the police database told him that the woman held a striking resemblance to the missing landlord, one Maria Gonzales.

“Oh my god…” Pyrrha muttered under her breath while Beast Boy, currently a lion, roared in anger.

“Let. Her. Go,” Raven demanded through gritted teeth, her eyes briefly turning red, but Mumbo merely laughed as he placed the card back in his pocket. He then twirled his hand, causing a black and white-tipped magic wand to suddenly appear in his hand with a puff of smoke, and he aimed it haphazardly at the heroes in front of him.

“And end the show early? You know me, I never leave an audience unsatisfied!”

With that declaration, both sides sprang into action. Cyborg opened with a quick shot with his sonic cannon, striking Mumbo’s head and causing it to disappear. The gagged bank teller screamed in fright at the sight of the now headless Mumbo and she fainted, but his head then returned almost as soon as she did.

“Geez, talk about a rough crowd,” Mumbo muttered under his breath before watching a trio of grenades flying towards him. He smiled then waved his wand in a circle. “Presto chango!”

Just before the grenades hit him, they suddenly poofed into clouds of white smoke, followed by three doves flying away from where the grenades previously were. Nora stared slack-jawed at the sight, only to feel something grasp her leg. Looking down, she saw a multi-colored rope had wound itself around her leg, and a moment later she screamed in shock as the rope whipped her around and flung her into a nearby column, shattering it. Jaune, currently trying to free the constricted security guards from their bindings, was forced to halt his attempts to shield them both with his quickly extending shield. He barely felt the debris hit him, and he looked over to see Nora picking herself off the ground. Nodding to himself, he looked back at the guard and pulled out his sword.

“I’m going to have to cut it, so don’t move, okay?” he told the man, and the guard frantically nodded, unable to speak thanks to the gag over his mouth. Jaune nodded back then carefully inserted Crocea Mors into the gap, making sure not to nick the man with his blade, then carefully sliced upwards. The metal circles cut into two, and the now freed guard practically tore the gag from his mouth.

“Th… Thank you!” he barely got out, and Jaune nodded towards the man before quickly looking towards Ren. He could see that his brother-in-arms had already freed the other guard, who had pulled out a nine-millimeter pistol and started firing it towards the magician from behind some debris, then looked back at the unconscious teller. The guard pulled out his pistol and prepared to join the battle, only for Jaune to gently grasp the man’s shoulder and look him in the eye.

“No, you and your friend need to get out of here,” Jaune said, looking at the still unconscious woman.

“But-!” the guard protested, only for Jaune to shake his head.

“I’m sorry, but its too dangerous for you guys.” Almost as if to punctuate his point, the sound of explosions rippled through the foyer as Mumbo threw small white pellets at the fighting heroes. Ren dove towards the nearby guard to protect him from the blast while Raven erected a shield around herself. Cyborg merely weathered the explosion while Beast Boy gracefully jumped over them while lunging at the magician. With a wild smirk, Mumbo opened up his sleeve and sent forth a swarm of playing cards at the surprised lion. The cards engulfed Beast Boy and flew him up to the ceiling with enough force to slightly crack it, then slammed him back down with a loud crash.

“Go, now!” Jaune shouted as he grabbed the woman and handed her to the guard before rushing out to join his friends. The guard watched helplessly as the heroes all desperately fought the magician then, reluctantly, ran to his coworker and beckoned them to leave. With Pyrrha providing them cover fire, the group ran out of the hole in the wall just as RWBY, Starfire, and Miss Martian entered the fray.

“Ooh, more Titans! Magnificent! Greetings, I am the amazing Mumbo!” the magician declared with a bow while at the same time ducking under a swing from Jaune. He then lifted Jaune up with a twister of flowers, hurling him into Pyrrha’s arms who collapsed under the sudden weight.

“Sorry…” Jaune muttered as he and Pyrrha got to their feet.

“It’s okay,” Pyrrha answered before rearming herself and facing Mumbo. “Almost pulled off a princess carry…” she whispered under her breath after Jaune turned away from her to do the same. The others prepared themselves briefly before springing into action. Weiss created a glyph under a pile of rubble, lifting it upwards then shooting the debris forward like a machine gun, only for the magician to turn the sharp chunks of concrete and rebar into harmless feathers that fluttered away. Turning intangible, M’gann flew through the cloud of feathers to land a hit on Mumbo’s jaw. His head spun like a top from the blow, only for his arms to spring up and clasp his head tightly, stopping it in its tracks. Not letting up, Starfire threw several starbolts into him, which he blocked by sending forth another swatch of playing cards that whipped around and slammed the Tamaranean into a nearby wall.

“I’ll say, you guys are the most rambunctious crowd I’ve ever had the misfortune of _trying_ to entertain!” Mumbo lamented. Pyrrha responded by throwing Miló at him with the crack of the rifle’s recoil boost. Mumbo teleported away in a puff of smoke, and as Pyrrha recalled her weapon Cyborg fired several volleys of plasma bolts towards the magician. Using her grappling hook, Yang lunged at Mumbo to deliver a punch to his gut, only for him to twirl out of the way and use her to shield himself from Cyborg’s volley. Yang screamed in pain as she was hurled at Cyborg, but before she could get up Mumbo threw three metal bands that enlarged in mid-air then closed themselves around her. Unable to move, she wiggled herself to face the magician and snarled.

“Oh, you motherfu-!” she cursed, only for Mumbo to poof a gag around her mouth, cutting her curse short into an angry muffle.

“Uh-uh-uh. There are children present,” Mumbo chastised, pointing his thumb at Ruby. The young Reaper looked confused for a moment, then offended once his words fully registered.

“Hey!” she shouted as she zoomed towards Mumbo in a burst of petals, moving around slices of purple magic Raven was launching at the magician. He whipped those apart with a handful of multi-colored streamers, but with his attention distracted Ruby was able to appear above him then strike the top of his head with the blunt end of her scythe, shoving his top hat down to encase his entire head.

“Gagh!” he grunted as he tried to pry the hat off, only for Ruby to spin-kick him in the gut and knock him to the ground. He bounced off the floor, only for Ren to tackle him and land several punches to his side. Ren then hurled him back towards Nora, who swung Magnhild like a baseball bat and struck him. A loud, gong-like sound erupted as Mumbo was flung through the wall. He tried to get to his feet, only for a series of glyphs to pin him to the ground as well as a large purple chain constructed by Raven. To top it off, Pyrrha ripped some exposed rebar from the ground and wrapped them around Mumbo, and Jaune took the opportunity to hurl himself onto the man and pressed down as hard as he could.

“Guys, hurry!” Jaune yelled as the others ran over to try and separate the wand and hat from Mumbo. Ruby, meanwhile, went with Blake to free Yang from her binds. The Golden Dragon shifted her shoulders once freed, then smiled at her teammates.

“Thanks.”

“No pro—” Ruby was interrupted by Mumbo suddenly teleporting out of his makeshift bonds and reappearing on top of a crystal chandelier. Immediately, the Red Reaper, Nightshade, and Golden Dragon fired their weapons towards him, their bullets shattering the crystal into small pieces. They rained down upon them, but Mumbo merely teleported away from the assault and back towards the main vault. The other heroes at this point recovered, and Beast Boy turned into an elephant and charged at the magician, who merely scoffed and shook his hand.

“Fly, Dumbo! Fly!” Mumbo proclaimed while twirling his wand, causing Beast Boy to suddenly levitate upwards. He quickly realized what was going on and turned back into his normal form, flailing about in a desperate attempt to free himself.

“Dudes, help!” he shouted as he turned into a multitude of different animals to try and escape. Cyborg ran to help his friend while firing a steady stream of sonic waves at Mumbo, who merely responded by waving his wand and stuffing the barrel of Cyborg’s arm with a bouquet of flowers.

“Huh?” Cyborg said as he looked at said arm in confusion. He tried to rip out the flowers, only for another batch to take its place. Getting angrier, he continued to rip out more and more bouquets until finally he simply turned his other arm into a sonic canon and fired at Mumbo. Starfire and Raven were joining in on the assault by firing swaths of magic and starbolts towards the supervillain, only for Mumbo to hurl a rhino-formed Beast Boy at them. Raven teleported away into shadow while a rapidly changing Beast Boy fell onto Starfire and Cyborg. M’gann then flew forth and tried to attack Mumbo once more, only for him to suddenly pop a large ring into existence.

“Now, my dear Miss Martian,” he announced, “can you defeat me… and the RING OF FIRE?!”

As he finished his sentence, the ring burst into flame, and M’gann felt her heartbeat quicken and her eyes dilate at the sight of scorching fire. She began to back away in fear, and even at her current distance she could feel the heat cause her slight pain. Unfortunately, a rope suddenly wrapped around her waist and began to pull her towards the fire, and as she grew ever closer M’gann tried to turn intangible to escape, only to suddenly find herself unable to do so. Her skin began to turn white as she panicked, only for a loud roar to break Mumbo’s concentration. A moment later, a green crocodile fell from above and split the rope in two, then tried to crunch the angered magician in his powerful jaws. Mumbo instead threw several white orbs into Beast Boy’s mouth, which exploded inside. Beast Boy shook his head in a pained daze just as M’gann recomposed herself and Weiss doused the ring of fire with a cloud of ice-cold gas. A moment later, an enraged Miss Martian flung herself at Mumbo while turning her hands into white claws.

“Okay,” he said while teleporting away from M’gann, spinning as did so, “for my next trick, I need a volunteer from the audience!”

Almost as if in response, Jaune sheathed his sword then shifted both items into a claymore. With yell, he charged at Mumbo and swung, appearing to bisect the man at the waist, only for Mumbo to quickly pull himself together and bind Jaune with an animated chain while also blocking Pyrrha’s rifle fire with a conjured mirror.

“Perfect, a volunteer!” Mumbo then created a wooden box and threw the captive Jaune into it. Only Jaune’s head was exposed, and Jaune could only watch horrified as Mumbo pulled a large saw out of thin air and placed it over the middle of the box.

“Guys!” Jaune shrieked as Mumbo began to saw down. The others fired their weapons and attacks, trying to stop the magician, but Mumbo drew a curtain in front of him that blocked the bullets and energy blasts. Not willing to stay put, Pyrrha sprinted past the curtain and parted it, only to stare as a still struggling Jaune was completely sawed in half. She screamed when Mumbo parted both boxes, and the fact that Jaune did not appear to be in any actual pain – along with his frantically moving feet – was the only thing that kept her from outright fainting.

“Ta-da!” Mumbo finished and bowed, only for an enraged Pyrrha to hurl her shield at Mumbo’s face, striking him in the nose. A loud honking noise followed as the man clutched his face, giving Nora and Ren the opportunity to grab both halves of their leader and bring him out of harm’s way.

“Are you okay?” Nora asked as she and Ren tried to figure out a way to solve this.

“Honestly, I’m fine,” Jaune noted, trying to keep a level head and thankful that he could not see anything below his neck at this point. He probably wouldn’t have been able to handle the sight of his lower half completely separated from his top. “Please help.”

“Bring him together,” Raven declared as she hovered over him, her hands glowing with magic as she quickly recombined both halves of Jaune. Behind her, Weiss summoned yet another series of glyphs and picked up the scattered debris then shot them at Mumbo. They pelted his body, and then with a snarl he summoned a robe and grabbed Weiss by the ankle, whipped her into Ruby with a surprised shriek, then threw her out of the building.

“Alright, everyone! Now is the grand finale!” Mumbo announced while taking off his hat. Blake fired several shots at the man from behind, leaping over him as he turned around and used his hat as a vacuum. The bags of money he had previously stolen were ripped open and had their contents be sucked into the hat, reality itself not caring that the hat would not realistically be able to hold that much cash. When he was finished, Mumbo let out a small smile, only to casually twirl his wand around and levitate the heroes just as they lunged towards him with the noticeable exception of Raven, who herself was able to fly out of his magical grip and float overhead. Her arms were outstretched and she prepared to attack him, only for Mumbo to suddenly bind her with so many metal bands that they almost mummified her.

“Mmmph!” Raven screamed from behind her metal gag, and the others struggled to break free, only for Mumbo to wag his finger from side to side while making clicking noises with his mouth.

“Now, kiddies! Unfortunately, that’s all the time we have for now! I have a big show to headline soon, and people are _dying_ to see my triumphant return!” Mumbo laughed. Outside, Weiss groaned as she slowly picked herself off the ground, shards of rubble falling off of her like hail.

“You know,” he continued, pointedly ignoring the large, purple aura surrounding Raven’s prone body and Weiss shaking herself out of her stupor, “I could actually use some assistants for tonight. And something tells me that you all would be just perfect.”

“No we wouldn’t,” Jaune immediately denied. The others merely snarled while continuing to struggle, and then Yang and Nora spat defiantly at Mumbo’s face.  He glared at the two as he wiped the spit from his face, the two girls looking accomplished and smug.

“Well, that was rude. But, I like your spunk,” Mumbo admitted. Then, without warning nor fanfare, he took off his hat and aimed it at the captured heroes just as Raven broke free of her bonds and Weiss ran into the building. As their friends started getting sucked in, Weiss erected a series of glyphs to try and hold them in place, using another to anchor herself to the ground. Raven summoned several shadowy arms that grabbed hold of her friends while also flying away from the sucking force, visibly straining as she did.

“You know, I always hated hecklers!” Mumbo shouted as he twirled his wand. Suddenly, a large shattered pillar was lifted into the air and slammed into Raven’s side, who shouted in surprise as she flew into another pillar. The object collapsed as she impacted it, burying her in rubble, but the pillar continued its swing towards Weiss unabated. The heiress tried to block it with a series of glyphs, each one shattering on impact but slowing the object down considerably. It wasn’t enough however, as the pillar slammed into Weiss’ side and flung her into a nearby wall, shattering her Aura on impact. Her vision began to blur and became hard to make anything out, but she could hear the defiant shouts of her teammates as they were sucked into Mumbo’s hat.

“That’s all, folks!” Mumbo declared as he put his hat back on his head and extended his cape out to the side. He then began to twirl just as Raven exploded from the pile of rubble and created a large magical sphere, concentrating it into a large slice of energy. She shot it towards Mumbo, who spun rapidly then teleported away just before it impacted. The slice continued and shattered a desk behind where he once stood into thousands of tiny splinters, and Raven snarled in anger.

“No!” she shouted, tightening her grip before she noticed the injured Weiss. The half-demon gasped, then quickly flew over to her and began to tend to her wounds. To her relief, Weiss’ injuries weren’t serious, and a quick application of magic healed them. The sounds of police sirens told her that that the police were on their way, and at that moment Raven teleported the two of them away to a nearby rooftop. Gently placing Weiss to the side to allow her to rest, Raven sensed out with her magic to try and ascertain Mumbo’s location, but to her disappointment she found nothing.

“No…” she whispered to herself and she wondered what to do, then steeled her expression. She wanted nothing more than to lash out in rage, but Raven knew that would make only make things worse. Right now, she had to tend to Weiss, make sure her injuries truly were healed. She was confident that Mumbo would show himself soon enough, and when he did, the two of them would ensure that there would be hell to pay.

Her eyes flashed red as she thought this, but that soon passed as she pulled out her communicator and dialed Nightwing’s number.

“Nightwing, we have a problem.”

* * *

 

Weiss awoke to a throbbing head and the touch of cool concrete beneath her back. With a groan, she pushed herself up with her elbows and opened her eyes. A quick look told her that she wasn’t bleeding, and only sported some minor bruising. Raven was currently speaking to someone on her T-Phone, and the sounds of sirens on the street below told Weiss that they weren’t too far from the bank.

“Gods…” she groaned again as she forced herself to her feet. Raven stole a glance towards the heiress then walked over to her. She lent Weiss a helping hand to help steady her, who gratefully took it when she appeared to wobble.

“She just woke up,” Raven continued to speak into her communicator while simultaneously putting it on speaker and erecting a silencing spell around them.

“ _That’s good to hear. Weiss, how are you doing?_ ” Nightwing asked, his voice filled with concern. Weiss rolled her shoulder to test it, and upon finding its performance satisfactory nodded to Raven.

“I’ll be fine. Nothing a bit of rest won’t fix,” she admitted.

“ _Right, your guys’ Aura acts as a limited healing factor. Raven said it was shattered during the fight._ ”

“It was.” Weiss frowned. “That clown threw a pillar at me.”

“ _How much do you have?_ ”

Weiss quickly tapped the side of her mask, bringing up her team’s Aura readouts. The rest of her team and team JNPR’s Auras were nowhere to be seen, while hers was hovering at a dangerous ten percent. Her Aura bar was blinking red in emphasis, and Weiss couldn’t help but frown.

“Not much, and it’ll take a few hours for it to come back,” Weiss begrudgingly admitted. It was hours that they didn’t have, and Nightwing’s groan told her he felt the same thing.

“ _Dammit…_ ” he cursed before falling silent, allowing the sound of his motorcycle to cut through the speaker’s audio. “ _I’m still an hour out, but we need to find Mumbo now. There’s no telling what he might do to our friends, and I’m not wanting to find out._ ”

“I’m coming, too,” Weiss immediately declared, unwilling to let her diminished Aura reserves impede rescuing their friends. Raven nodded back at her, and something told Weiss that Nightwing was smiling to himself on his side of the phone.

“ _Glad to hear getting hit hard doesn’t keep you down. Now get going. We don’t have any time to lose. Once you find Mumbo, be careful._ ”

“Trust me, we know,” Raven replied.

“ _Keep me posted. Nightwing out._ ” With that, the communicator clicked off, and Raven sighed and shook her head before pocketing the device away. The half-demon then turned to face Weiss, who looked back at her.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Raven asked, her eyes showing her concern even when her voice remained stoic.

“I should be asking you the same thing. You took a hit much worse than me.”

“I’m tougher than I look. Guess I can say the same about you.” Both girls smiled at each other before becoming serious once again. Weiss pulled up a map of Jump City on her HUD while Raven floated up to the top of a nearby rooftop water tower to get a better view of their surroundings.

“I’m not seeing any new police activity,” Weiss reported, then tapped her chin as she began to hum in thought. Raven herself began scanning the area, and before long both girls were scaling the rooftops to an even higher vantage point.

“Okay, think,” Weiss muttered to herself as she felt Raven lift her up towards her. Although she could feel her Aura steadily increase, attempting to use her Semblance now would only slow her recovery and she needed all of it if she wanted to take Mumbo down. Her thoughts drifted back towards the fight itself, specifically towards Mumbo’s mannerisms and behavior. It was quite animated, disturbingly so in fact, but Weiss felt she had managed to obtain a decent insight into the man’s character. He was a showman, obviously, a man who loved the spotlight more than anything else. She suspected that, outside of his obvious psychosis, he robbed the bank not because he wanted the money but because he wanted the attention. He also said that he had a ‘show to headline soon’, and it was then that Weiss turned her head up to look at Raven.

“Raven, where’s the entertainment district?”

* * *

 

As it turned out, Jump City’s waterfront contained a large assortment of activities for one to enjoy. Arcades, movie theaters, vibrant beaches, and an array of shops along the boardwalk. There was even a circus in town, complete with a giant big-top tent sitting on the pier. A prime location for a egomaniacal supervillain wanting to stage an epic comeback. Currently, Weiss and Raven were scouting out the area on top of a nearby radio tower, Raven scrying for any magical signatures while Weiss’ focus remained glued to any sign of her teammates’ transponders. So far, none were appearing, and she couldn’t help but worry.

“Don’t worry, they’ll be fine,” Raven comforted the girl, having felt her emotional distress. Weiss sighed to herself then looked back up at Raven.

“Has something like this happened before with you guys?” she asked.

“He turned us into circus animals one time,” Raven immediately answered. “Turned me into a white bunny.”

“… Yeah, white is definitely not your color.”

“You’d be surprised,” Raven joked, and Weiss couldn’t help but smirk. An image of a white-cloaked Raven appeared in Weiss’ mind, and she had to admit it did suit her. But now was not the time to focus on fashion. Now was the time to focus on their mission. Weiss took her eyes off of her teammates’ nonexistent signals and focused on the big-top tent. If she were a betting woman, that would be the place Mumbo would strike next. Given how Raven was staring intensely at the same structure, she likely agreed. Weiss thought for a moment, glancing down at her suit and then up towards Raven, an idea beginning to form in her head.

“What’s up?” Raven asked, feeling how intensely Weiss was thinking. After a moment, Weiss nodded to herself than looked back up at Raven.

“I have an idea, but I’m not certain you’re going to like it,” Weiss said, but Raven stared back at her stoically.

“Anything beats sitting around and doing nothing.” She floated back down to Weiss’ level and stood atop the roof. “What is it?”

“Mumbo attacked the bank that Cyborg’s group had just left. That can’t be a coincidence. He had to have known where they were. To me, that means he doesn’t want us around for whatever he’s planning.”

“Makes sense. Out of everyone, we’d be the most liable to stop him.”

“Exactly. He likely knows we’re here somewhere. So, if he thinks we’re gone…”

“We can catch him off guard,” a man’s voice suddenly finished the thought. Weiss yelped as she spun around and prepared to thrust with Myrtenaster, only for the man to effortlessly parry the blow with his armored gauntlet and then twist the rapier out of her hands. It was then that Weiss noticed the man looked awfully familiar, and upon seeing the dark-blue bird sigil on his chest she realized exactly who the person was.

“Nightwing,” Raven greeted her leader, sounding almost gleeful. Nightwing smiled at the half-demon then turned to look at a suddenly embarrassed Weiss with a smirk before tossing back Myrtenaster.

“Need to work on your spatial awareness,” he advised, and the embarrassed blush on Weiss’ face slightly deepened. “Good to see you two again, though.”

“I knew you were here,” Raven stated, only for Nightwing to smile knowingly at the comment.

“ _Sure_ you did.” The man then turned serious as he knelt down on the roof’s edge, Raven and Weiss following his lead. From behind his mask, Nightwing obtained a readout of the area’s electrical systems, security cameras, even gas and water pipelines. He directed this information to Weiss’ mask, Raven following along with her magic, then rubbed his chin in thought.

“Alright, here’s what we’re going to do,” he started, “Raven, teleport us out of here.”

Raven did as instructed, teleporting the trio into a nearby dark alleyway. Using her magic, any security cameras looking in their direction had their images turned to static, and once the coast was clear Nightwing turned to face both of them.

“Can you make us look like we’re wearing our normal clothes?” he asked, and a moment later a purple sheen surrounded the three of them that masked their costumes and made them look like their normal attire. There were some noticeable differences, and Weiss noted that should she move the fabric too much the illusion shattered, but it would suffice for now. She also noticed that Raven appeared to be in strain, and went to check on her before Raven stopped her with an upraised palm.

“I’ll be fine.”

Nightwing nodded, then looked back over to Weiss and Raven, who nodded back at him. They then walked out of the alleyway and towards the tent.

“Once we find our seats, we’ll have to wait until Mumbo arrives. Once he does, we are _not_ going to go in immediately.”

“Why not?” Weiss asked, wanting more than anything to get her friends back, but he shook his head.

“If we’re to have any chance of stopping him, we have to strike at the opportune time. Not before, and certainly not after. Trust me, I don’t like it any more than you do.”

“Hmmph,” Weiss groaned before ultimately conceding. As much as she didn’t like it, he did have a point. They tried to overpower Mumbo before back at the bank, outnumbered the maniac thirteen to one, and yet they still lost. Now they only had the three of them. Trying to fight Mumbo in a direct assault would only spell disaster. They had to play this right.

Weiss’ ruminations were suddenly halted when a group of young women spotted the trio, and upon seeing Nightwing in his civilian garb they all screamed shrilly.

“Oh my gosh, is that Dick Grayson?!” one of the girls screamed. Raven groaned and Dick immediately put on a faux smile while waving at the girls. Weiss, meanwhile, had her eyes widen slightly, having recognized the name. Sure, the Titans had mentioned Dick’s name before, she had assumed that was simply a nickname. Dick was apparently a shorthand for Richard – why that was the case, she didn’t know – but they never once told her his last name. Knowing what it was now told her why.

Richard ‘Dick’ Grayson was, after all, the adopted son of Bruce Wayne, who adopted him after his parents were tragically killed in a mob hit during the last Flying Graysons circus performance. She had read up on the man back at the Watchtower, as well as the company his family’s name was plastered across. By all accounts it was a highly successful, and highly ethical, company who sponsored many philanthropic events throughout the country and especially in Gotham City. The man himself, despite his playboy ways, was a lone bright spot in the crime-ridden cesspool. She couldn’t help but admire the man.

But it would be nearly impossible for someone like Bruce Wayne to not notice his adopted son was a costumed vigilante. Sure, he sometimes gave off an air of being a ‘rich kid with no day job’, as described by Lois Lane before she, funnily enough, dated him for a time and got to know him better, but Weiss seriously doubted he was dumb enough to not notice his son was Nightwing. Thinking about it more, she remembered that Nightwing used to be the first Robin for Batman, having fought alongside him for many years and even during the Darkseid War. Apparently the young boy even ran over Kalibak with the Batmobile at one point. But that then begged the question as to how the young Dick Grayson managed to find the time to meet the Batman in the first place. From what she remembered, he had appeared roughly a year after his adoption, and there was no way the young boy could have managed to find the time to meet, train, and become Robin unless…

“Oh my god…” Weiss muttered under her breath, but she was broken out of her thoughts by the young women swarming the three of them. They began to babble near incoherently, but Dick attempted to calm them down.

“Ladies, please. I’d love to stay and chat,” he then suddenly pulled Weiss and Raven close to him, “I’m currently taking these lovely ladies to the circus this evening.”

Realizing what Dick was doing, Weiss immediately began to play along. “Come on, Dick! Let’s go inside! I want to see the funny animals!” she whined in a stereotypical valley girl voice while fluttering her eyelashes at him and holding herself close to him. Raven, meanwhile, remained as stoic as ever, but she did give the three women a mighty death glare.

“Oh, please. We can give you a much better time than those two,” one of the women, a long-haired brunette, stated in a sultry tone. The two girls next to her giggled, but Dick merely glared at them.

“I doubt that,” he said sternly while holding them close by the shoulder, sending the three women aback. “Now, if you’ll excuse us.”

The trio briskly walked past the three women without sparing them a second thought. Once they exited their line of sight, they let go of one another while continuing to walk towards the tent.

“Sorry about that,” Dick told the two girls.

“Don’t worry about it,” Weiss replied with a wave of her hand, “I knew what you were doing.”

“You did catch on pretty fast,” Dick noted. “Prior experience?”

Weiss turned her head to face Dick’s before responding, “My father wasn’t as…supportive as yours.”

“Ah.” Dick seemed to understand Weiss’ hidden meaning but didn’t say anything more.

“Those three were…annoying. And empty headed,” Raven complained.

“Oh, obviously.”

“You didn’t need empathic abilities to see that.”

The three chuckled among themselves as they entered the line into the tent. The line was long, but at the same time it moved quickly, and they soon found themselves at the ticket booth.

“Hey, would it be possible for me and my friends here,” Dick started while once again pulling Raven and Weiss close to him, Weiss fake-giggling as he did, “to get a private booth?”

The booth operator, a young teenager with freckles and glasses, stared at them with a blank expression before typing in his request. “That’ll be $500 each, sir.”

“Of course.” With a smile, Dick reached into his pocket and gave the boy his credit card, and a moment later the boy handed it back along with three tickets. He directed them to the staircase on their left, mumbling under his breath something along the lines of ‘damned rich boys’, as the trio walked upstairs with their arms intertwined. To keep up appearances, they played up their date charade with loud laughs and shrill voices, but once they entered their private booth they immediately dropped the act and separated. Raven erected a silencing ward around them while simultaneously dissipating the illusion around their bodies, revealing their costumes in all their glory. Weiss took the opportunity to look at how much Aura she had managed to recover, and to her disappointment she was barely out of the red at roughly thirty percent.

“Still low?” Nightwing guessed, and Weiss nodded. “We’ll have to make do.”

“So now what? We just wait?” Raven asked, and Nightwing nodded while walking over to a nearby wall. Using his mask’s sensors to find the wall’s internal wiring, he quickly found a spot then cut a square-shaped hole with a wing-ding. He then pulled out a small device and attached it to some wires, and a moment later Weiss was greeted by the sight of CCT monitors being broadcasted into the corner of her HUD.

“Huh, neatly organized,” she noted. “I’ll have to commend Cyborg for that little feature.”

“Man does good work,” Nightwing agreed before looking out through the glass windows of their private booth. Raven and Weiss joined him, and as they watched the circus performers below they couldn’t help but remain apprehensive.

“I know what you’re thinking, but trust me. This is the best option for us,” Raven advised the still tense Weiss.

“…I know.” Weiss sighed and pinched the bridge of her brow. Seeing she was still distressed, Raven placed her hand on Weiss’ shoulder, and Weiss grabbed it back and nodded. Nightwing watched from the corner of the room silently before continuing to work on the wiring. Once he was finished, he pulled out three disks and placed them onto a desk inside the booth. One press of a button later, the three disks lit up to reveal a holographic display, showing all of the various CCT feeds from across the area.

“He shows up anywhere near here, we’ll see it. Raven, can you shield these?” he said before walking over towards the window. Raven did as instructed, casting a spell to prevent Mumbo from disabling the cameras, then nodded when she was finished. Leaning against the window, he stared down below and narrowed his eyes. “Thank you. Now…we just have to wait.”

* * *

 

For the next hour, the trio waited inside their booth. Their attentions were only marginally focused on the show below them. Instead, their eyes and ears were glued to their surveillance of the surrounding area. So far they had nothing, but given how the show was set to be ending soon, they felt it wouldn’t be long now before Mumbo arrived. Taking her eyes off of her CCT monitors briefly, Weiss looked down at the circus with a slight amount of interest. There were acrobats soaring over wires high above the ground. Animals were doings tricks at the behest of their operators. Clowns juggling various items and generally making a nuisance of themselves.

All in all, Weiss was generally unimpressed. Certainly good enough as a low-class venue, but her standards were higher than that. When Nightwing chuckled to himself, Weiss figured that he had noticed.

“Yeah, something told me that this kind of place wouldn’t be your type of thing,” he guessed, and after a moment Weiss nodded. “Figured. Still, I think you would have liked the Flying Graysons. We were…something else.”

Weiss stared at him for a moment. Behind Nightwing’s cheerful face, she could see the pain that was still held within. She could easily understand why. A child losing their parents is always tough, and Dick had to watch it happen before his very eyes. It was no wonder why he and Bruce would have turned to crimefighting afterwards.

“Yes, I would have liked to have seen them,” Weiss admitted before turning back to her surveillance. “Raven, you sense anything?”

Raven, with her eyes closed, continued to wave her hand around to sense for magic. Her face was scrunched in concentration, and as she continued to scry her head began to tilt. When her eyes suddenly shot open, both Weiss and Nightwing turned sharply to face her.

“I—” Raven began, only for the lights in the circus to shut off. A moment later, several spotlights began to circle around the circus floor, and a heavy fog started billowing in from the performer’s entrances.

“ _Ladies and gentlemen!_ ” an announcer proclaimed as the performers began to exit the stage. “ _Boys and girls of all ages! I now present to you tonight’s grand finale!_ ”

“Okay, time to move,” Nightwing whispered as he gestured to Raven. The half-demon girl nodded, then carefully cut a hole into the glass. Once she was finished, she carefully levitated the circle of glass and placed it on the ground, allowing Weiss and Nightwing to grapple to the high beams on top of the tent, Raven flying after them. Perching themselves on the beam, the trio watched with narrowed eyes as the announcer continued to speak.

“ _He’s amazing! He’s wonderful! He’s the greatest magician in the world, with skills beyond anything you’ve ever seen before!_ ” Raven scoffed at that while Nightwing and Weiss zoomed in at the spot where the spotlights were now converging. “ _Now, put your hands together for…”_

Drums began to sound off, building to a crescendo, when a large puff of smoke erupted in the center of the stage. Then, almost like a vacuum, the fog began to be sucked into the center, revealing a bowing Mumbo.

“The AMAZING Mumbo!” he finished with a flourish. Rather than applaud, the audience stared at him in silent horror, then a loud scream rang out as people tried to get out of their seats in a frantic escape.

“Uh-uh!” Mumbo chastised while waving his wand, causing everyone to be tied to their seats by their feet and waist. “And leave before the show is over? My, and I thought my _last_ audience had a cold reception.”

“Oh, I’ll give you a cold reception…” Weiss growled under her breath as she rotated Myrtenaster’s chambers to a vial of Freeze gas. She wanted nothing more than to jump down and skewer him on her blade, but she stayed her hand and remained still.

“Well,” Mumbo continued while hopping onto a central podium, “I have a show for you all tonight! Raw thrills! _Danger_! Intrigue, and so much more! May I present to you my assistants for this evening!”

Mumbo then took his hat off of his head and from it spewed forth several objects. Weiss gasped when she saw, locked inside of cages, were various animals that could only be her transformed friends.

“Not again…” Raven groaned, remembering the last time this happened, while Weiss continued to study her friends’ new forms. Inside of one cage was what she could only assume was her team. She saw a black-furred wolf pup with a red tinge along its head hiding behind a much larger yellowish-brown bear. Weiss immediately pegged the two as Ruby and Yang, and the slender black panther currently growling and roaring angrily at Mumbo was likely Blake. Weiss could easily see that Blake was heavily offended at what Mumbo had turned her into, and she was glad she could not understand what she was saying.

Inside another cage was team JNPR. Like their sister team, they too were now turned into multi-colored animals.  Jaune had been turned into what appeared to be a Golden Retriever, currently being watched over by a lioness Pyrrha. A stoic-looking owl was currently perched on a small beam, its magenta eyes telling her it was most likely Ren, while a sea lion wearing a pink skirt was leaning upright while barking and clapping, a Nora action if there ever was one.

In the final cage was what was left of the Titans. Starfire was presently transformed into a tiger – Weiss noticed the angry look on Nightwing’s face upon seeing her state – while Cyborg was transformed into a large bear with cybernetic implants on its head. In contrast to the others, Beast Boy was not transfixed as a single animal. Instead, he was changing rapidly between several different inanimate objects, including a lamp, telephone, and even an RC car with which he attempted to move through the gaps between the cage bars only for a force field to send him back. M’gann had been turned into a large snake, but was cowering in fear of a small ring of fire that encased her. It was then that Weiss noted the burns on the other Titans, telling her that they had tried to get her free, but something Mumbo had done prevented them from getting to her.

“When I get my hands on him…” Raven growled as her eyes flashed red, only for an equally furious Nightwing to place his hand on her shoulder.

“Wait. We have to find an opening,” he told them, visibly having to hold himself back. Mumbo at this point was floating high above the audience, still well below themselves, as he began erecting his stage. They saw boxes, rings, cages and podiums form out of thin air. Spotlights turned multi-colored as they highlighted specific sections, and Mumbo created all of it with an air of an orchestral composer.

‘ _Certainly has a flare for the dramatic, I’ll give him that…_ ’ Weiss thought as she carefully walked along the edge of her beam to get a better view. Nightwing zipped over to another for the same reason while Raven remained rooted in place. At this point, Mumbo forced the transformed heroes out of their cages and into positions. Weiss felt a twinge of pride at how, even now, they attempted to fight back against their captor, only for Mumbo to conjure up a whip and strike them, the blow sending them back.

“Back, you animals! Back!”

Blake only roared even louder at the crack but another series of whip strikes forced her into a series of round podiums. With a loud growl, Yang attempted to swipe at the crazed magician, only for a conjured pair of Mumbos to appear and hold her back with a pair of whips. To Weiss’ disgust, the conjured pair of Mumbos appeared to be female.

“Ah, three cheers for my lovely assistants in keeping this crazed beast contained!” The Mumbos bowed at the praise, and Weiss had to force herself to look away.

“That was not an image I wanted to see today,” Nightwing admitted as they watched Mumbo begin his show. He created versions of himself and forced their animal friends into performing humiliating acts.

With Blake and Pyrrha, a version of himself dressed as a lion tamer ‘tamed’ the two cat girls with a held chair and a spiked whip. The two cats clawed and roared at the tamer Mumbo, but the man merely smirked and forced them further and further up onto podiums. With Yang and Cyborg, he had forced them onto tiny bicycles and magically beckoned them into riding them. Both of them glared at a laughing Mumbo, and when he forced them into juggling bowling pins at the same time those glares only intensified. Had they not been magically glued to their seats, its likely that they would have attacked the man. Another Mumbo was forcing owl-Ren to carry snake-M’gann through several rings of fire. Weiss’ heart ached for the clearly terrified Martian girl, who was currently curled around Ren’s talons as a lifeline and noticeably flinched whenever they had to go through the rings, and Weiss vowed to treat her to something after this. Nora was currently balancing a green ball, who had to be Beast Boy, on the tip of her nose, and if nothing else appeared to at least be trying to make light of the situation. Finally, Jaune was currently being forced into pushing a barrel with the wolf puppy Ruby balancing herself on top of it.

Another Mumbo, whom Weiss assumed to be the actual Mumbo, was currently flying around the tent and using his hat to suck out all valuables from the audience with manic glee.

“Thank you, thank you! You’re too kind!” he proclaimed as more and more jewels, electronics, wallets and purses were sucked into the endless void within Mumbo’s hat, and when Nightwing beckoned the two women to join him, Raven and Weiss immediately complied.

“Okay, first things first,” he began. “Right now, Mumbo’s focused on ‘entertaining’ everybody. We can use that as a distraction. Raven, can you turn our friends back to normal?”

“No,” she admitted, “not with his wand still in play. But, I should be able to free them from their captivity.”

“That’ll have to work. Focus on getting them and the audience out of here first. Then we get Mumbo.” He then turned his attention towards Weiss, who herself was in deep thought as she stared deeply at Mumbo. “Something on your mind?”

Weiss hummed to herself before looking back at the two Titans. “I have an idea, but I want to ask you two something first. Am I correct in saying that Mumbo, more than anything else, loves the spotlight?”

“Yes,” Raven answered with a nod. “Everything’s a show to him, and he’s the main star.”

“Right, right.” Weiss hummed while rubbing her chin. Looking back down at the thieving magician, she continued, “How long do you think you can try to free everyone before he notices?”

“Not long, but if I set up properly, I should be able to free everyone at once.”

“That’ll take too long,” Weiss stated while shaking her head. “What we need to do is buy you more time.”

“How do we do that?” Nightwing asked, and Weiss turned her head towards him and smirked.

“By taking the spotlight off of him, of course.” Nightwing and Raven stared at her for a moment before looking back down at the man in realization.

“Yes, yes,” Nightwing said, beginning to see Weiss’ train of thought. “If we upstage him, he’ll undoubtedly try to counter with an even bigger performance, allowing Raven the time she needs to get everyone out and corner him.”

“One problem. How are we going to do that?” Raven pointed out, and the others paused to think. She had a point. Unless they had a good enough show to top whatever he could do, they were unlikely to get the reaction they needed. If anything, he’d just attack them outright and drag them into a fight they’d undoubtedly lose. As much as Nightwing didn’t want to admit it, he doubted that him performing a solo Flying Graysons routine would cut it. When he noticed a thoughtful look on Weiss’ face, he looked towards her in expectation.

“You have an idea?” he asked, and after a moment Weiss nodded and looked back towards them.

“Do you have a microphone?” she asked, and Nightwing arched an eyebrow at the question.

“Yes… Why?” Weiss’ smile widened at that, and when she told him exactly what she had planned, Nightwing and Raven couldn’t help but smile back.

* * *

 

By the time Weiss had managed to make her way down to the ground, Mumbo had heavily expanded upon his ‘performance’. He was forcing the heroes into doing increasingly outlandish, not to mention dangerous acts. Swinging on wires over a firepit, balancing on thin rods over a bed of spikes, dodging heavy pendulums on a tight beam, and many others that she couldn’t even recognize. It was barbaric, and judging by the audience’s reception they, too, didn’t find any enjoyment in the spectacle. She doubted they would have even if they weren’t being held captive.

That lack of reaction only served to make the still hovering Mumbo angrier, and one twirl of his wand later he created strands of rope that tied themselves to everyone’s arms and hoisted them up to their feet like puppets on a string.

“Come now! These pitiful creatures have worked tirelessly for _your_ entertainment. How can you just stay on your seats and not applaud them?!” He glared at the captive audience, and after a moment a nervous applause slowly began to trickle out. He seemed to be satisfied at this response.

“Thank you, you’re too kind!” he said with a flourishing bow. “Now, for my next act we’ll—”

“This show sucks!” Weiss suddenly shouted at the top of her lungs as she strode onto the ring, wearing her costume for all to see. Everyone grew quiet as Mumbo sharply turned around to stare at the Huntress.

“WHAT?!” he replied. If Weiss was phased, she didn’t show it and instead continued to walk forward.

“You heard me. This ‘show’, for lack of a better word, sucks. It’s derivative, uninspired, not to mention needlessly cruel. I mean, you have all this vast, unimaginable magical power, and all you give us is the Ringling Brothers?” The captive audience chuckled at Weiss’ crack, causing her to smirk as she briefly shot her eyes up towards the roof. She saw Nightwing and Raven nod back down at her, the Titans leader interacting with the tent’s lighting control system and Raven preparing herself to head down at any moment.

“I mean, honestly. I would have expected something more like Zatanna Zatera, not…whatever this is,” Weiss continued, and when Mumbo marched over to her with heavy stomps, Weiss let out a triumphant smirk. From behind the magician, she could see her friends gawk at her while bear-Yang was beginning to laugh.

“That woman has nothing on me!” Mumbo chastised while poking his finger threateningly at Weiss chest. “And moreover, who are _you_ to criticize _me_ for standing out here, by myself, and trying to entertain the masses!?”

“Someone with standards.” Weiss earned a blowback of cards for that remark, sending her skidding back across the ground. The other heroes prepared to jump to her defense, but an upraised hand kept them at bay. As she got to her feet, a fuming Mumbo, with literal steam somehow billowing out of his ears, glared at the Huntress.

“’Standards’? Is that what you call it?” Mumbo asked while tightly clenching his fist. “Please, I know you hero types. The standards you have is mass market drivel. Video games, cartoons, needless explosions and violence. You have no sense of appreciation for the performing arts.”

“Oh, I have plenty of appreciation for the performing arts. But you know what I appreciate more? Knowing that the person performing can _actually_ perform.”

Mumbo went still at Weiss remark, his eyes going wide. Seeing her chance, Raven began to slowly move to the outskirts of the tent, tendrils of dark magic seeping across the floor and untying everyone. A few spectators noticed, but a quick gesture from the half-demon caused them to go quiet.

“Ho… How DARE YOU!” Mumbo shouted as he raised his wand, but when Weiss continued he paused yet again.

“See, there it is again. The magic you’re threatening me with right now isn’t even yours. It’s the wand’s. You’re not doing this under your own power, grown from talent or developed with practice and hard work. No, you found a cheat and instead of admitting to it and trying to develop yourself, you instead decided to pass it off entirely as your own. That sickens me, and you should be ashamed of yourself.”

Mumbo’s face turned red and hissing steam erupted out of his ears. Growing his head cartoonishly large, he began to shout at the top of his lungs, “NOW SEE HERE-!”

Weiss then pretended to have an epiphany as she gasped and raised her finger. “You know what? I’m pretty sure that even _I_ could do a better job than this drivel.”

Mumbo stared at her then childishly scoffed while crossing his arms. “I’d like to see you try.”

Weiss smirked then reached into her pouch before pulling out a microphone. Seeing this, Mumbo couldn’t help but laugh.

“Oh, you’re going to sing?” he said with a smile. Weiss ignored him and took a deep breath, while he himself began to laugh. “That’s adorable! I didn’t know _American Idol_ was coming to my stage! I would have set up! Please, go on!”

Weiss took another breath before looking up. Nightwing, having finished his modifications, flashed a thumbs up to the former heiress. She nodded back as the opening notes of a piano played out, then began to sing.

“ _Mirror…Can you hear me?_ ” she sang, music suddenly playing out thanks to the modifications Nightwing had made. Mumbo stared slack-jawed as her voice resonated throughout the tent, and a large cheer and applause broke out among the audience. Nora honked in excitement while clapping her flippers together while Ruby bounced around happily.

Weiss continued, “ _Do I reach you? Are you even listening? Can I get through?_

_“There’s a part of me that’s desperate for changes, tired of being treated like a pawn. But there’s a part of me that stares back from inside the mirror. Part of me that’s scared I might be wrong, that I can’t be strong._ ”

“God dang, she’s good,” Nightwing muttered as he began to manipulate the lights into shining down on top of her. He had already believed she was good from how she described herself, but hearing her now truly moved her boasting into undeniable fact. The audience seemed to agree, as the applause was growing louder and Mumbo was getting angrier at getting upstaged. He was frantically looking around and yelling at everyone to stop, trying to get the spotlight to focus back on him, but Weiss merely ignored him and continued singing gracefully as Raven quietly finished freeing the audience and moved towards the captured heroes. As quietly as they could, the audience began moving out of the tent as Mumbo remained transfixed on Weiss.

“ _But I don’t intend to suffer any longer. Here’s where you dominion falls apart! I’m shattering the mirror that kept me split in pieces, that stood between my mind and my heart. This is where I’ll start!_

_“I’m not your pet, not another thing you own. I was not born guilty of your crimes. Your riches and your influence can’t hold me anymore. I won’t be possessed. Burdened by your royal test. I will not surrender._

_“This life is mine!_ ”

When Weiss finished her chorus, Mumbo screamed while tightly gripping his hair. “Oh, so you can sing?!” he yelled while twirling his wand around, forming a massive stage that contained lights as well as a giant version of his head. “Two can play at that game! _5, 6, 7, 8!_

Mumbo began his song by sending forth a ring of magical energy, knocking Weiss back and causing everyone to go quiet. A ring of multi-colored rope then wrapped itself around Weiss and bound her. Mumbo smirked when Weiss growled in anger, then began to sing.

_“You think you can defeat me – oh, how very droll!_ ” Mumbo continued while using his magic to manipulate Weiss’s body, forcing her into a makeup stand while surrounding her with large and animated playing cards. “ _Well, Titan, one thing you should know: I am the one with magic powers around here, I am the one who runs the show!_

“ _I am the master of ceremonies, so let me set you straight: With just a wave of my magic wand I’m… Master of your fate!_ ”

Using a glyph to free herself, Weiss quickly got to her feet and glanced behind Mumbo. Much of the audience behind him was fleeing out of the exits while Raven was working on removing the trapped heroes’ magical bindings. She was getting close, but when Mumbo appeared to turn around Weiss immediately launched into yet another song to keep up her distraction, forming a series of glyphs behind her at the same time.

“ _Come at me, and you’ll see, I’m more than meets the eye. You think that, you’ll break me, you’re gonna find in time, you’re standing too close to a flame that’s burning. Hotter than the sun in the middle of July. Sending out your army, but you still can’t win; listen up, silly boy, ‘cuz I’m gonna tell you why…_

_“I burn!_ ” Weiss sang while her glyphs, powered by Firefly Gel, erupted into columns of flame. The audience that remained cheered at the sight while Mumbo faltered. Weiss, meanwhile, continued, “ _Can’t hold me now, you got nothing that can stop me. I burn! Swing all you want, like a fever I will take you down._

When Mumbo attempted to retaliate with his ropes, Weiss gracefully jumped over them with a twirl and landed on a platform glyph, doing a mocking curtsey at the same time. Mumbo growled at this while the audience cheered ever louder.

“ _Reign supreme? In your dreams;_ ” Weiss continued to sing while moving from platform to platform, dodging the enraged Mumbo’s attempts to halt her. “ _You’ll never make me bow. Kick my ass? I’m world-class, and Super Saiyan now._

“ _You’re starting up a fight that you just can’t finish; watch the little hearts while they scrape you off the floor._ ” Mumbo screamed at Weiss’s sung taunt and launched two large conjured gloves at her, but Weiss merely blocked them with her glyphs. “ _Bringing out your rockets? Well, shoot ‘em up, baby. High as you can go, but I’m the one who’s gonna soar._

“ _I burn!_ ”

Rather than let Weiss continue, Mumbo decided to enlarge himself to a cartoonish size. He towered over Weiss, his head almost reaching the metal support beams along the tent’s roof, but he was so transfixed on the woman who was clearly upstaging him that he was blind to Nightwing, who himself was scaling down the side of the tent and began escorting people out as soon as he got to the floor. Raven, meanwhile, finished freeing the other heroes and they began to assist in getting the others out, but Mumbo either didn’t see or merely ignored them as he tried to regain his spotlight by out-singing Weiss.

“ _With just some hocus-pocus and slight of hand, you all are under my command!_ ” he sang, confirming to Weiss that he really was no longer paying attention to everyone outside of her. She smirked at this, but this only seemed to make him angrier as he created several gloves that walked on two fingers.

“ _Put them in their cages, keep them all apart! Places, everybody – the show’s about to start!_ ”

Several of the gloves turned to do as instructed as yet others began to sing, only for the freed Titans and Huntsmen/Huntresses to quickly engage and overpower them.

“ _He is the master of ceremonies,_ ” Blake and Pyrrha ripped apart a pair with their fangs and claws, Yang and Cyborg doing the same to another pair, “ _So let him set you straight: with just a wave of his magic wand, he’s…_ ” Ruby and Jaune ganged up on one while Nora crushed another underneath her massive bulk. “ _Master of your fate! (Master of your fate!)_ ” M’gann, still a snake, constricted around the center of yet another while Ren shredded it with his talons. To finish off another, Yang then grabbed Beast Boy, who turned into a heavy lamp, and slammed it onto the top of the final glove assailant, popping it like a balloon. “ _Master of your fate! (Master of your fate!)_ ”

With a large twirl, closed eyes, and a wicked smile, Mumbo appeared to be completely lost in the moment. ‘ _Good_ ,’ Weiss thought, and as he prepared to finish Weiss cut him off.

“ _They see you as small and helpless. They see you as just a child. Surprise when they find out that a warrior will soon run wild. Prepare for your greatest moments. Prepare for your finest hour. The dream that you’ve always dreamed is suddenly about to flower!”_

Weiss began to move and dance along a long platform of multiple glyphs as she continued to sing. There was no more cheering as the last remains of the audience high-tailed it out while Mumbo stared back numbly and shrunk back down to normal size.

“ _We are lightning, straying from the thunder. Miracles of ancient wonder!_

“ _This will be the day we’ve waited for,_ ” Weiss sang just as the wholly freed Titans and Huntsmen/Huntresses attacked the thoroughly distracted Mumbo, Raven pulling him to the floor with her magic after getting bowled over by their animal friends. Nightwing then followed up by whacking the magician in the face with a thrown wing-ding, but when Mumbo attempted to retaliate he noticed that Weiss continued to mock him by singing more.

“ _This will be the day we open up the door. I don’t wanna hear your absolution; hope you’re ready for a revolution. Welcome to a world of new solutions. Welcome to a world of bloody evolution. In time, your heart will open minds, a story will be told, and victory—"_

“SHUT UP!!!” Mumbo shouted while ripping out several chunks of his hair. He whipped some rope at her, only for Raven to slice it apart with a dark tendril and Nightwing to spin kick him in the face. When Weiss, with a mocking smile on her face, began to twirl like a ballerina along her glyph platform, Mumbo completely lost it and lashed out wordlessly at the person who completely upstaged him, sending forth a torrent of ropes, streamers, and razor-sharp playing cards towards Weiss while completely ignoring the other heroes who were presently assaulting him. Weiss stopped mid-pirouette at the sight and hastily erected a last minute glyph to try and protect herself, only for it to shatter almost instantly.

Everything seemed to go into slow motion at that. Weiss could see how low her Aura still was, and it would undoubtedly shatter under Mumbo’s strike. Should that happen, there was no telling exactly what it would do to her. Instinctively, she threw her arm up to shield herself to the side out of desperation, only for Raven to create and shoot a purple swath of magic against the rod. The magic struck the wand’s center and, with a loud crack that sounded like shattering glass, it splintered and released a small explosion of magical energy that shot everyone back. Mumbo’s final attack dissipated near instantly, turning into nothing more than harmless smoke. With a groan, Weiss picked herself off her feet and shook her head, only for her discomfort to go by the wayside when she noticed her now normal looking friends doing the same.

“Guys!” Weiss cried out as she ran towards them. They looked back at her then each other, and upon seeing that they were indeed back to normal they jumped up and smiled.

“Oh, thank god!” Yang shouted as she and the others inspected themselves for anything abnormal. “I mean, don’t get me wrong. Bears are badass, but I prefer being me.”

“I’m going to kill him,” Blake darkly muttered, still angry at the form Mumbo turned her into.

“Rawr.” Yang teased, only for Blake to softly glare at her. Beast Boy was currently comforting his sister, who was maintaining that she was perfectly alright, while Nightwing made his way over to the now suddenly materialized Ms. Gonzalez.

“Maria, are you alright?” he asked while he and an absolutely giddy Starfire helped the woman up to her feet.

“I… I’ll be fine. Thank you for saving me,” she said earnestly while looking towards Weiss and the other heroes. “All of you.”

Ruby smiled at the landlady and nodded back. “It’s no problem. We’re just doing our job.”

Maria smiled wearily at that and the others couldn’t help but smile back in kind. The woman then groaned and almost fell, but the pair of heroes holding her managed to keep her upright. “Oh, I think I’m going to take a few days off.”

Weiss couldn’t help but chuckle at that. “I’ll bet. You definitely—” Weiss halted her speech when Maria moved out of the way slightly, exposing what was behind her. She saw a now normal looking Mumbo lying on the ground, which by itself wouldn’t have been alarming.

The fact that he was convulsing violently was.

“Raven!” Weiss shouted while pointing at the man. Raven turned to look and gasped when she saw the man and sprinted over to him. M’gann quickly followed, and the two women began to work on saving him.

“What the hell is going on?” Jaune asked as he and the others looked on in horror.

“Magical overload!” Raven answered while working to extract as much of the excess magical energy as possible. “Somehow shattering the wand resulted in a backlash!”

“How did _that_ happen?!”

“Star, get her out of here now!” Nightwing ordered, and at once Starfire flew a confused Maria out of the tent as the rest of the heroes began working on the dying man. As they did, Raven’s thoughts were running wild. As she pulled more and more energy out of him and saw his condition continue to deteriorate, one thought began to run through her head.

‘ _I did this…_ ’

* * *

 

In the end, after nearly an hour of tireless work they’d managed to extract enough magic from Mumbo’s unconscious body to prevent his death. But, as they saw him being loaded onto the back of an ambulance with an oxygen mask covering his face, the last thing either of them felt was accomplishment.

“Raven, it wasn’t your fault,” Nightwing declared from his motorcycle as they all rode back to Titans Tower.

“That was _my_ magic,” Raven countered, huddling up to herself in her seat inside the T-Car. “My magic was running through his veins, and it almost killed him. _I_ almost killed him.”

“You also saved his life,” Ruby pointed out, trying to comfort her friend. “None of us would have been able to get it out of him without you. Heck, if it wasn’t for you, Weiss, and Nightwing, we’d all still be animals and I’d be a puppy.”

“If it wasn’t for me, we wouldn’t have had to save him from a magical overload in the first place. Dick could have easily knocked it from his hands and broken it, stopping him and returning everyone back to normal without almost killing him.”

Everyone grew silent at Raven’s declaration. As much as they didn’t agree with her assessment of the situation, truly feeling it wasn’t her fault, they also knew why she was so scared. No one could blame her for that. Kori, sitting in the front passenger seat, turned to look at Raven with sad eyes.

“Friend Raven, please. I don’t… I don’t like it when you do the moping. You’re my friend, and when you get sad about yourself, it hurts. You’re so much stronger and better than that.”

Raven looked back at an almost tearful Starfire then sighed. “I… I know, Star. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. We’re here for you, okay?” Garfield replied while gently taking her hand. “And we always will be.”

Raven looked at her friend then everyone else. From the driver’s seat, Victor flashed a thumbs up while the others looked at her reassuringly. Raven could feel the love and concern coming from all of them, and when she let out a small smile the others smiled back.

“Thank you, guys,” she said, and Yang nodded back while leaning back on her chair.

“No prob, Rae,” Yang replied before looking at Weiss. “Now, let’s discuss something else.”

“Oh, gods…” Weiss groaned, feeling the looks everyone was giving her. “Look, I know what you’re going to say—”

“That that concert was the most awesome and hilarious thing I’ve ever seen? Then yes, you’d be correct.”

“It was most spectacular!”

“Seeing Mumbo flip out like that was hysterical, dude!”

The others all rattled off about Weiss’ performance, how her singing was incredible and the way she effortlessly took the wind out of Mumbo’s sails. Weiss slowly grew to smile at all the praise, a faint blush forming on her cheeks.

“Yeah, it was kind of fun,” she admitted.

“’Kind of fun,’ she says. Girl, it looked like you were having an absolute blast. Remind me to get you on my team during karaoke night,” Victor replied, only for Ruby to suddenly drag her partner in close.

“Nope! I call eternal dibs on having my bestie Weiss be on my karaoke team!” Ruby declared, and Garfield let out a disappointed grunt and snap of his fingers.

“Ah man!” he stated, knowing their next karaoke night was in just a few days. Judging by the looks on RWBY’s faces, they knew this too. Yang then developed a thoughtful expression before looking back at Weiss.

“You know, I’m pretty certain that first song was a brand new one,” she pointed out. “Funny how you’re able to come up with a brand new song in less then ten minutes yet can’t come up with a superhero name in over a week. And don’t give me the ‘Jaune stole my color’ excuse this time, as we’ve already determined that was nonsense.”

“Wait, what?” Jaune suddenly asked in clear confusion while Weiss looked at Yang in embarrassed irritation.

“Don’t you start, Xiao Long,” Weiss replied.

“Hold on, is that why you called me?”

Weiss ignored Jaune’s suddenly offended outburst and straightened herself. “And for your information, I did come up with a name.”

“Oh, praise the heavens above!” Yang eulogized while raising up her arms in thanks.

“Be quiet and take this seriously!”

“Never!” Everyone, including Jaune, laughed at Yang’s impertinence. Even Weiss let out a chuckle, and when everyone calmed down they looked at her expectantly.

“Well,” M’gann began, “don’t leave us in suspense.”

Weiss cleared her throat and looked everyone dead in the eyes. “Ivory Mage.”

* * *

 

“And so, children,” Brother Blood preached to his flock, nearing the end of his sermon, “understand this. The true nature of man is to seize control of one’s destiny. Do not let others decide your fate, let others control your destiny. Your life and your desires are in your hands alone, as decreed by our Lord.”

“So says the Highfather,” the congregation chanted, their heads bowed low. Brother Blood looked down upon them and smiled.

“So says the Highfather. Now, go forth and spread his word. There is much work to be done.”

“Our work is never done.”

Brother Blood nodded at their declaration, and soon enough his brothers and sisters began to file out of the main hall and out into the nighttime city. Brother Blood remained behind to watch them go, only to turn to the lone individual who remained.

“Brother Blood,” the acolyte said, “the plan was a failure. Mumbo yet lives.”

“Is that so?” Blood asked while moving towards the back room of the church.

“Yes,” the acolyte answered, almost sounding despondent. “I don’t see how we can continue our plans now.”

“Don’t be so sure, my wayward son. You’re thinking too small.”

The acolyte seemed confused at this. “What do you mean? The plan was—”

“I know what the plan called for,” Brother Blood interrupted, silencing the acolyte, “but even the best laid plans never survive contact with the enemy. We had not known about the new recruits, so we could not have planned for them. Yet I am not disappointed in the outcome in the slightest.”

“You’re…you’re not?”

“No. Besides, we got what we needed. Yes, Mumbo and the Titans yet live, but sometimes…” Blood smiled wickedly, “Sometimes all that is needed to destroy our enemy is a single seed of doubt. That seed, if you nurture it and grow it, will consume a person like a plague. So, if we do our duty and allow that seed to grow…”

“Of course,” the acolyte gasped in realization. “I’ll see to the preparations at once.”

“Please do. Glory to Trigon.”

“Glory to Trigon!” the acolyte chanted before walking out towards the front of the church. Brother Blood watched him leave with a satisfied smile before becoming stoic. Closing his eyes, he took in a deep breath and allowed himself a far more wicked grin.

“I know you’re here,” he said, and after a few moments he heard the heavy stomps of armored boots hitting the tiled floor.

“If you think you’re going to be able to ‘convert’ me with that crap I heard in there, you’ve got another thing coming,” the man said from behind his helmet. Blood merely laughed.

“How disappointing. I would have loved to have you join our little family.”

“I’ll pass,” he responded. The two remained in silence before Brother Blood began to speak in a much more serious tone.

“I trust you have what I ordered.”

“I do. It’s waiting for you out back with the rest. The payment?” In response, Blood reached to a nearby wall panel and opened it, revealing a large safe. Placing his thumb against the scanner, it opened and revealed itself to house a heavy duty briefcase. He grabbed it by the handle then placed it onto the center desk and opened it, revealing it to be filled to the brim with stacks of hundred-dollar bills.

“Ten million dollars for the creature and transport, as negotiated,” he said, and the mercenary grabbed a stack for inspection.

“Hmm,” he hummed while thumbing through its contents. Satisfied, he placed it back into the briefcase and closed it, the sound of a lock clicking shut ensuing afterwards.

“I trust everything is in order?” Blood asked, and the mercenary nodded.

“It is, but if that thing breaks out, it’s on your head. You better have guns, big guns, pointing at that thing at all times.”

“You won’t be staying? I would have thought you’d try to take advantage of this opportunity against our mutual enemies.”

“I’m still under contract, and the last thing any mercenary who wants to keep getting hired should do is to break a contract. So don’t even bother.”

“Shame. Should I anticipate anything?”

“Just one: don’t trust it. At all. It played dead a while back, tricked a few into going into the cage, and it slaughtered them. If it’s still there, it’s not dead. You got that?”

“Of course, Mr. Wilson,” Brother Blood affirmed, before rubbing his hands in anticipation. “Now, let’s go see exactly what I ordered.”

[~][~]


	17. Trials and Tribulations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A crime wave has sprung from the aftermath of Mumbo's incident, leaving the Titans and RWBYJNPR tired and on edge. None more so than Raven herself.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 13: Trials and Tribulations **

* * *

 

It had been a few days since Mumbo was admitted to the hospital. As Raven had said, he had basically overdosed on magical energy. He was expected to make a full recovery, but that provided neither him nor the half-demon much comfort. For the supervillain, as soon as he got out he’d be thrown in jail for assault, armed robbery, kidnapping, and more. He wouldn’t see the outside of a jail cell for years. Raven, meanwhile, continued to blame herself for putting him into harm’s way. She wouldn’t say she particularly liked the man. Indeed, she found his antics to be annoying at best, and he often put people in danger whenever he lashed out.

But the prospect of hurting someone, perhaps irreparably so, struck too close to one of Raven’s greatest fears. It was why she tried so hard to keep her powers in check, lest she become an instrument for her father.

All of this and more ran through Yang’s head as she pummeled a large sandbag inside the Titans’ gym. Truth be told, the sight of Mumbo convulsing on the ground made Yang recall something that she had been trying to avoid ever since it happened. She sympathized with Raven to a great degree.

The sound of automatic doors hissing open brought her out of her thoughts, and she turned around to see Dick Grayson – apparently the adopted son of Bruce Wayne and thereby, if Weiss was correct, the Batman – wearing a black tank top with a towel draped around the back of his neck. He was holding two water bottles, and he tossed one to Yang who easily caught it. Yang quickly popped the lid and drank a few gulps before stopping to breathe and wipe away some the excess from her mouth.

“Thanks,” she said, and Dick nodded.

“No problem Yang.” The young man continued, moving towards a set of weights while Yang went back to working on her form. Behind her, she could hear Dick begin his morning routine, but she paid him no heed. Instead, she was focused on what was in front of her while trying to avoid thinking about what was plaguing her mind.

“What’s wrong?” Dick suddenly asked, causing Yang to stop herself and turn her head towards him. She saw that he had a concerned expression on his face, and she kept herself firm.

“Nothing, I’m fine,” she replied and prepared to continue her training, but Dick got to his feet and walked over to a mat.

“You know, in my personal experience, training with someone else is a much better way to get results.” Dick motioned to himself while standing in the middle of the mat. “Care to join me?”

Yang regarded him for a moment before shrugging nonchalantly. “Sure, but don’t get mad when I beat you.”

“Same,” Dick countered, and Yang couldn’t help but let out a smile at his cheek. She strode over to him and readied herself, as did Dick opposite her. For a moment, the two studied each other. Where their bodies’ weight was centered, which leg they were leaning on, where their eyes traveled. Everything that they could possibly use to gain an advantage. Finally, the two rushed at each other.

Yang started with a quick jab towards Dick’s face, one that he parried and responded to with his own. Yang sharply leaned back to allow the sweeping fist to swing just past the tip of her nose. She followed up by throwing out her elbow, which Dick caught and then used her momentum to throw her over his shoulder and onto the ground.

“Oof!” Yang grunted before springing back to her feet. Dick watched her with a confident smile, then extended his arm towards her and flexed his fingers in a ‘bring it’ gesture. Yang frowned before moving forward, launching herself into a series of punches and jabs that Dick Grayson danced around. He occasionally countered with his own light attacks. Yang was growing more and more frustrated, and her eyes turned red as she pressed on with her assault.

When Dick overextended on one of his jabs, Yang seized the opportunity to latch onto his arm and hold him in place. She then punched him in the gut, causing him to double over. She followed up with a quick uppercut that knocked him into the air, but before he landed he angled himself so that he did so with a roll. Landing on his feet, he launched forward and punched Yang squarely in the face, knocking her back slightly. Before she could retaliate, he crouched and swept his leg under hers, knocking Yang off balance and onto her back. Dick quickly leaped towards her, flipping her around and pinning her. Yang struggled to get free before sighing and tapping her foot on the ground. Dick immediately let go and helped her to her feet.

“Thanks for the workout,” Yang stated. “You and I both know that, if I wanted to, I could’ve easily beaten ya.”

“Keep telling yourself that. Maybe one day it’ll be true.”

“…heh. I like you, man,” Yang admitted, and the two shared a hearty laugh. After the laughter died down, Yang shook her head and made her way over to the door. “Well, I better get out of here. Today’s my turn to make breakfast, and—”

“Yang, wait,” Dick called out, halting Yang in her tracks. Her back was turned to him, but even then, she could feel the concerned look he was giving her. She sighed and closed her eyes.

“Dick, I’m fine. Really.”

Dick hummed and shook his head. “I was raised by the world’s greatest detective. One of the many things he taught me was how to read a person, and right now you’re upset. Just as you’ve been for the past few days.”

“I’m not—” Yang protested, only to sigh and shake her head. “Listen, I know you’re trying to help but… It’s complicated.”

“Well, luckily for us both, I like complicated.” Dick sat down on a bench and looked at Yang expectantly. Part of her wanted nothing more than to simply walk away, but she knew that wouldn’t solve anything. How she was feeling was burning a hole in her gut, and it was better to get it out of the way before it festered. Steeling herself, she walked over and pulled another bench in front of Dick’s, then sat down across from him. The two heroes stared at each other for a moment, Dick patiently waiting for Yang to start.

“You know the basics of how we got here, right?” she soon asked, and Dick solemnly nodded.

“Yeah, the others let me know when you guys settled in. For what it’s worth, I’m sorry. I’ve lost people but…nothing like what you guys have been through.”

“Thank you.” Yang sighed and wrung her hands together, looking at them intently. “When…Brainiac took Ruby from us, intending to turn her into another of his twisted experiments, for a good long while I saw only red. My mind was focused entirely on getting my sister back and damn the consequences.”

“Yang, no one’s faulting you for wanting to do that,” Dick clarified, thinking Yang was suffering from some form of survivor’s guilt. “Hell, you guys _did_ rescue your sister, and none of you would be here if you hadn’t.”

“Yeah, but he might have lived if I had been just a little bit calmer.” Seeing Dick’s confused expression, Yang continued. “Right after Ruby got captured, a bullhead sent to evacuate us to Beacon finally arrived. Instead of going back, I…” Yang took a deep breath and hung her head, staring at the floor. “Instead of going back, I forced the pilot into taking us into Brainiac’s mothership just on the off chance we could get her back.”

“You…forced him?”

“I threatened that if he didn’t fly us in, I would have tied him up, thrown him in back, and flown us in myself. In the end, he agreed to do it, which forced Ironwood’s hand into canceling his Plan G in favor of blowing open a hole for us, and…” Yang trailed off, and Dick immediately understood what had happened. From what Yang was describing, nine people went into Brainiac’s ship, but only eight made it out.

Seeing Dick’s unasked question, Yang nodded. “He died in the crash. We didn’t have time to mourn him, and we just left his body there. The worst part is that I don’t even know his name and yet he died because of me.”

“And seeing Mumbo convulsing reminded you of him?” Dick guessed. His tone wasn’t accusatory nor angry, simply concerned for the wellbeing of his friend. After a moment, Yang nodded.

“…yeah,” she whispered. “I know that it’s irrational. I didn’t kill him, Brainiac did, but I put him in that situation because I shanghaied him into our rescue attempt. I could have offered to drop him off somewhere safe and flown us in or, hell, just thrown him out the bullhead and outright steal it out from under him. He might have been able to get to safety in Beacon. But no, I had to have him as a pilot, and he died because of it.”

Dick listened intently to Yang’s troubles, nodding along with her voice. “Yang, I have a question.”

“Sure,” Yang replied.

“Did you know how to fly?” he asked, and Yang sighed and shook her head.

“…no. If I’d tried to fly us in we probably would have died almost immediately.”

“Hmm,” Dick hummed. “And if he said no, what would you have done? Would you have actually tied him up like your threat?”

Yang shook her head, look up at him with blue eyes. “No, not really. At most, I would have just thrown him out the bullhead and tried to fly us in or die trying.”

“Right. And how did the pilot act after he agreed to fly you guys in?”

Yang looked at him. “Professional, dedicated to seeing the mission through despite the incredibly likely chance of death. A perfect Atlesian soldier, really. Didn’t complain, argued on our behalf, the whole nine yards.”

Dick nodded again, then smiled at Yang. “Yang, I can assure you it wasn’t your fault that he died. I might not have met this man, but from what you describe, I’m not seeing a man forced into doing something he didn’t want to do. I’m seeing a man who believed in yours and your friends’ convictions so much that he was willing to sacrifice himself to help you see it through for the chance it might save the day.”

“Yeah and look where that sacrifice got us. Out of a planet of nearly a billion people, only eight managed to escape and everyone else is either dead or captured in freaking bottles.”

“True, that’s one way to look at it. But that’s not how I see it,” Dick declared with absolute conviction, but Yang seemed unconvinced. Deep down, she knew it was irrational, but she couldn’t help but feel the guilt all the same. Dick stared at her for a moment before rising to his feet. Yang saw this and looked up at him in confusion, and when Dick extended his arm to help her up she gratefully took it.

“Here, I want to show you something,” he said. He walked away through the doors, Yang following him. They walked down the stairs and into the vehicle bay, where Dick immediately made his way towards a large jet. Rubbing his hand on it, Dick began to explain.

“This here is the T-Plane. Unimaginative, I know, but—”

“Fits the theme, right? T-Car, T-Cycle, T-Plane, T-Sub,” Yang listed, and Dick flashed a thumbs up and a smile.

“Exactly. Gotta keep the naming conventions down. Anyway, Vic made this puppy a few years ago. Always works on upgrading it whenever he can. It’s one of the most advanced atmospheric fliers on the planet.”

“Huh.” Yang quietly inspected the aircraft, running her hand along its sleek white and blue finish. Smiling at this, Dick pressed a button on his watch and opened the front canopy to the aircraft. Yang looked at him for a moment and, seeing how he was gesturing her towards the pilot seat, Yang hopped inside and made herself comfortable. Her hands went to the controls and her eyes scanned the many systems that made up the display.

“How fast can this girl go?” she asked, and Dick jumped up to rest near her.

“Mach 3, easily. Right now, Victor’s working on getting her exo-capable.”

“He wants her to fly into space?”

“Yeah. Never know when the need will arise. Plus, he likes the challenge.”

“Heh, I bet.” Yang chuckled, Dick joining with her. Her hands went back to checking the instruments, and seeing this Dick smiled once again.

“You know,” he began, “I’m pretty sure that we have a flight simulator laying around somewhere.” Yang, curious, turned her attention towards him entirely. “If you want, I think we can bring it down here and let you have a go at it.”

Yang regarded him for a moment then looked at the cockpit she was currently sitting in. Her thoughts traveled back to what started this entire conversation, and at once she understood where Dick was coming from. Slowly, she felt a smile form on her face, and she turned to face Dick once again.

“Before I do anything, I’m going to need a pair of aviators.”

“That can be arranged, Golden Dragon. That can be arranged.”

* * *

 

When Yang and Dick finally came back upstairs to join the others in the living room and kitchen, they were greeted by a sight both of them were honestly expecting to have come by now.

“Look, I know how it looks,” Weiss began, but the image of Batman stared her down from the Titans’ monitor with an unamused expression.

“ _What part of ‘keep a low profile’ did an impromptu concert fit into?_ ” he asked. Yang could practically hear the eyebrow being raised behind his cowl, and Weiss blushed slightly before straightening herself.

“My primary concern was getting my friends and the audience to safety,” she explained. “I couldn’t risk a fight without others possibly getting caught in the crossfire, and our previous engagement with Mumbo convinced me that a frontal assault wouldn’t have worked anyway. So, given what I knew about him, I figured that a distraction was in order to get everyone to safety.”

“ _By singing, knowing that he’d challenge you right back?_ ”

“Yes.” Weiss’ blunt answer caused Yang to quickly suppress a chuckle alongside the others.

“What’s the big deal, anyway?” Garfield asked from his spot on the sofa. “I mean, you must have known that with them coming here that they’d join us on missions. People were bound to find out.”

“ _I know, I just would have preferred teams RWBY and JNPR’s formal introduction to the world to be a more controlled environment and not a viral YouTube video._ ”

Yang felt that Batman did have a point there. Apparently, a member of the audience was able to not only keep his or her phone on them, but they also managed to take a video of Weiss’ entire performance. In just three days, it already had five million views and it was climbing rapidly. Part of Weiss felt proud of that, but she didn’t say anything of the sort.

“ _Regardless, what’s done is done. The League’s already issued a joint statement with the Titans._ ” Dick nodded his head at that, confirming they had indeed done so. None of them needed to be reminded of that. After all, they helped Dick to craft it. Weiss imagined that Batman was simply getting it on the record.

“ _And Ivory?_ ” Batman’s voice cut into the former heiress’ musings, and her attention snapped back to the Dark Knight. Whereas his expression before was stoic, now it appeared to be slightly proud. “ _You did good work. Thanks to your quick thinking, you, Nightwing, and Raven were able to salvage a situation that could have resulted in a lot more casualties as well as rescue the others._ ”

Weiss smiled at that, then nodded. “Thank you.”

Batman nodded back, then turned his attention back towards Dick. In a much softer voice, he asked, “ _How is she?_ ”

“She’s getting better,” Dick answered, knowing exactly who his father was referring to. “M’gann’s in her room, trying to help her out, but… You know how sensitive she is about that stuff.”

“ _Raven’s stronger than she thinks she is. She’ll pull through._ ”

“We know,” Kori replied. “Mr. Batman, if I may? Is there any word from Themyscira?” From the tone of her voice, the Tamaranean princess was clearly worried about Donna, hoping that her friend was alright.

“ _Diana sent us a message the other day,_ ” he answered. “ _They’ve managed to confirm that the perpetrator was not from either Bana-Mighdall or Themyscira. However, whoever she was, she’s long gone now.”_

“Do we have any ideas where she might have come from?” Victor asked, leaning across the counter and resting on his arm.

“ _Nothing conclusive. We’ve been looking, but they’ve managed to hide their tracks well. They planted false leads into countries all around the world, from North Korea, China, Iran, and many more.”_

“Damn. So much for a quick solution,” Dick grunted, and Batman nodded.

“ _In any case,_ ” Batman continued, “ _Queen Hippolyta is expected to let Diana and Donna leave the island within the next few days. Is there anything else to report?_ ”

“Jump City’s been in a crime wave ever since Mumbo, on a scale we haven’t seen in years,” Dick pointed out, and everyone let out a tired sigh. Indeed, the alarm had been blaring near non-stop ever since Mumbo’s latest episode. Arsons, murders, hostage situations, and more were constantly popping up. It was not only causing the heroes to feel exhausted, but it was also starting to raise the stress level of the city. Out of everyone, Raven was feeling it the worst. As an empath, she could feel everyone’s emotions, and stressful emotions like fear and anger got to her the worst.

“There’s more.” Everyone turned to see Raven walking into the room, M’gann walking in behind her. The girl, as they sadly expected, showed signs of stress but at the same time was brushing it to the side. “There’s something here. Something dark and twisted. It felt wrong in so many ways.”

“ _What do you mean?_ ” Batman asked, his attention now fully centered on the half-demon. The others were focused as well. This was the first time they were hearing of this, and with their attentions rapt, Raven continued.

“I only just started noticing it a couple of hours ago. It’s faint, almost non-existent. I only noticed it because it seemed to get more…agitated at the increased stress of the city. Almost as soon as it appeared, though, something masked and hid it from me. I can’t find it again, but I know it’s here.”

Everyone paused, letting Raven’s words sink in. A sense of foreboding descended over everyone, and the silence was only broken by an awkward cough from Ruby.

“Well…” Nora paused. “That’s not disturbing or anything.”

“What do you think it is?” Pyrrha asked calmly. “Could it be a demon?”

“Possibly, but I don’t know. I’ve never sensed something like it, and frankly, that worries me,” Raven answered. Her voice remained stoic, but everyone couldn’t help but feel unnerved at her report. Ruby wondered exactly what her friend could have sensed. They had known that magic existed on Earth for quite some time – Jaune’s and Pyrrha’s little experiment with Diana’s Lasso was a testament to that – but her experience in that area remained limited.

“ _Hmm,_ ” Batman hummed, clearly disturbed. “ _Keep looking, and tell us what you find. In the meantime, I’m working on narrowing down the list of suspects behind Crane’s attack on Gotham. It’s turning out to be more complex than I anticipated, and I’ll—”_

Batman was interrupted by the alarm blaring once again, causing the young heroes to groan. Without saying another word, Batman nodded at them then disconnected, granting them the time to quickly run into their rooms and change into their uniforms.

“I’m getting reports from all over the city,” Cyborg reported while everyone piled into the elevator. A deep scowl was on his face as he pored over a holographic projection from his arm. True to his word, several red splotches were splashed around all corners of the city. Jaune, Nightwing, and Ruby all looked at the map intently. After a moment, the three leaders faced each other for a moment then turned back to the others. It looked as though the three of them had some unspoken conversation that only team leaders could do, and a moment later they proved that assumption to be correct.

“We’re going to split into three teams,” Nightwing said. “I’ll take the Titans up north. Team RWBY will go eastside while team JNPR will go west. Maintain constant radio contact.”

“Got it,” the others replied. Soon after, the elevator doors opened and everyone piled into the T-Car. As they sped into the city, the three teams began preparing for what they all knew was going to be a very long day.

“By the way, dudes? How’d ya do that?” Beast Boy asked. Nightwing, Jaune, and Ruby all looked at each other for a moment then smiled knowingly.

“It’s a leader thing.”

“I KNEW IT!”

* * *

 

The apartment building was engulfed in a raging inferno. Flames and smoke spewed out of broken windows and burnt-out doors, and firefighters ushered people out of the building and into safety while they themselves continued to bombard the building with high-powered water jets.

“Did we get everyone?!” Captain Kelly yelled to his fellow firefighters. His question was punctuated by a large explosion ripping through the building, forcing everyone to cover their faces instinctually while onlookers screamed in fright. The jets of water focused on the flames, desperately trying to douse them as a trio of firefighters stumbled out of the entryway. Black soot covered their bodies, and when they stumbled to the ground they were immediately assisted to their feet by their fellows.

“Jones, Edwards, Smith, talk to me,” the chief asked as they carried them to the firetruck. Jones ripped off his mask, revealing his sweat-streaked face was covered in grime, while Edwards and Smith did the same.

“We—” Jones coughed violently for a few seconds before forcing himself to continue. “We had to get out. The fire got too hot for us to take.”

“Was there anyone inside?”

“We don’t… We don’t think so,” Edwards recounted, and Kelly sighed in relief. That relief ebbed away when he began to do a headcount of his men, and to his worry he noticed he was a man short. “Where’s Billy?”

“He…” Smith spoke, his eyes beginning to widen as he and everyone else began to look towards the burning building, “he was right behind me…”

Before anyone could speak, they heard a shrill, feminine scream come out of the building. Moments later, another explosion, one larger than the previous, rocked the building and sent burning chunks of debris flying towards the street. Men and women dived out of the way as flaming stone slammed into parked cars and nearby buildings, demolishing many.

“DAMN!” Kelly cursed as he began to back away from the burning building, directing his firetrucks to do so as well while keeping up their dousing attempts. He then ran to grab a mask and strapped it tightly to his face before turning to run inside the building.

“Cap’, what are you doing?!” a firefighter asked in alarm. “You can’t go in there! The fire’s too big, you’ll burn to death!”

“We’ve got Billy and civilians trapped inside!” Kelly pointed out as he tried to run in, only for a pair of firefighters to hold him back. “Let me go!”

“Sir, please!” they begged as Kelly struggled. “We can’t-!”

Any further begging was halted by the sight of four individuals leaping across the street from the building behind them. The firefighters and onlookers only saw them for a moment, but they saw that they were led by two heavily armored individuals holding shields that they used to protect themselves and the two behind them from the flames. The people below watched them as they disappeared, and Kelly immediately began barking orders to assist the Titans in their rescue attempt. Any part of him that pridefully chafed at others doing his job was quickly quashed, and right now he could only pray that they were successful.

* * *

 

“You see anything?” Jaune asked as he and the rest of JNPR reorganized themselves inside the room they had breached into. They had only just stopped a mugging when they saw the smoke rising from a nearby apartment complex, and they’d gotten here as fast as they could. From the inside of his helmet, his optical systems filtered out the heavy smoke as best as it could, although it was still difficult to make out anything of note.

“Electrical systems are completely gone, and the structural integrity is only at twenty-five percent,” Ren noted, his voice muffled by the green rebreather he was currently wearing. The intense heat of the flames was making him sweat profusely, but luckily his Aura was preventing anything worse from happening. “We don’t have much time.”

“Dammit. What about gas lines?”

Pyrrha looked down as she followed the remaining gas lines to the basement. Her scowl deepened the more she looked, and when she reached the main she looked back up at her leader. “Not good. The flames have almost reached the gas main. They reach that, this entire building’s going to explode.”

Jaune took a second to think things over before coming to a decision. “Alright, here’s what we’re going to do. Lightning, use your freeze grenades to put out the fire at structural hardpoints as you and Guardian make your way to the gas main. We have to keep this building up as long as we can. Lotus and I will find any survivors and get them out.”

“Got it.”

“Aye-aye!”

“Understood.”

His three teammates all nodded, Nora loading freeze grenades into Magnhild and shooting a few into the fire. They exploded into clouds of cryogenic gas, snuffing the fire out and leaving a thick layer of ice in its wake. Nodding in approval, Jaune kicked open the door to the hallway, and without needing prompting his teammates ushered out to find any remaining survivors.

A few freeze grenades of their own in hand, Jaune and Ren went room to room, lobbing grenades wherever needed. They quickly entered into a rhythm of forcing open doors, announcing their presence while scanning the room with their optics before moving on to the next. They made sure to stay next to one another at all times, as the last thing they needed was to get lost in the flames.

“Hello?!” Jaune shouted into one of the last unchecked rooms on their floor. As with the others, they found no one. He grunted angrily before turning back to the hallway. He saw Ren do the same and he shook his head regretfully. Ren then pointed upwards, the fire making it hard to hear his voice. The two then ran as fast as they could up the stairs, and as they did, Jaune's internal comms crackled to life.

“ _White Knight, Verdant Lotus, Pink Lightning and I made it to the gas main_ ,” Pyrrha's voice came in. Behind her voice, the two young men could hear the icy explosions of grenades, telling them that Nora was hard at work.

“What did you find?” Ren asked as he kicked open a door.

“ _We're working on keeping the gas and fire contained, but we won't be able to do so for long,_ ” she reported. “ _Also, I’m seeing signs of tampering with the release valve._ ”

“Arson?” Jaune suggested.

“ _It's certainly looking like it. You find anyone yet?_ ”

“Not yet. Lotus and I are working through the fourth floor now. Listen, keep the building from blowing as long as you can, but I want you and everyone else out well before then.”

“ _You got it, Boss Man!_ ” Nora quipped, and Jaune couldn't help but crack a smile. Jaune then refocused as he kicked open the charred door. Once again, he could see no one inside. He would have cursed had he not been forced to jump back to avoid falling debris.

“Damn!” he cursed afterwards for good measure and instinctively shielded his face. Moments later, he heard Ren run back towards him, the man patting a small fire out from his suit.

“This place is falling apart!” Ren shouted, and Jaune scowled while looking at him.

“Yeah, I noticed! Did you find anyone?”

“Nothing!”

Jaune jumped back as another piece of debris rained down, cinders dancing across his metal armor. Internally, he was immensely grateful that his new armor was heat resistant, but even then he was starting to feel the heat wash over his skin, and he was beginning to sweat profusely. Part of him wanted to turn tail and run, avoiding the possibility of them getting consumed by the blaze altogether. But another part, one much louder and more convincing, was screaming at him to press forward. They knew for a fact that at least one firefighter was trapped inside, and the possibility of others was too great to ignore.

“Guardian, Lightning,” Jaune shouted into his team’s comms as he and Ren ran up the stairs to the fourth and final floor, “this place is about to crumble. As soon as things turn south, get out!”

“ _You got it,_ ” Pyrrha responded. Behind her voice was the sound of bursting pipes and the sizzle of melting ice, and both Jaune and Ren guessed that they didn’t have much time left. With a silent nod towards each other, the two began to search each and every room. The fire was blazing hot, and black smoke filled the hallways and made it almost impossible to see. The roar of the inferno made it nearly impossible to hear as well, and with each kicked-open door and searched room, the fire spread further and further.

Jaune kicked open another door, only to shield himself with his arms as an eruption of flame spewed forth, consuming his body. He stumbled out, patting himself out as best he could before looking back into the room. A deep frown stretched across his face, and when he turned around to look at the other rooms Jaune couldn’t help but notice the telltale signs of them being in a similar state. Black smoke drifted out from underneath the doors, and the wood was charred black and cracked. Several of them already had holes in the frames, from which fire came out. When another explosion rippled through the building, knocking him off his feet, Jaune quickly got himself up and sighed.

“Guys, we have to-!” he began, trying to ignore the regret filling his being, only for him to be interrupted by a frantic Ren.

“ _I got someone!_ ” Ren shouted over the comm. Jaune’s orders were immediately forgotten as he used his helmet’s software to find Ren’s exact location, then sprinted towards him. Jaune bounded around a corner, where he saw Ren lifting a burning piece of timber off of a pinned firefighter. The man’s mask was cracked, and his breathing was ragged, but he was alive.

“Quick, pull him out!” Jaune said as he hefted up another charred piece of wood. His hands stung from the heat, but he threw it to the side just as Ren freed the man. Jaune took one look at his leg and winced before pulling out a syringe of painkillers and administering it to the injured man.

“Sir, is there anyone else in the building?” Ren gently asked while lifting the man up bridal style. Weakly, the firefighter – Billy, if Jaune overheard correctly – pointed towards a room where the entrance was sealed under a mound of debris. Jaune took a look at it then gestured Ren towards the nearest window. Ren nodded back, then kicked a table through the glass before gently grappling to the street below.

“Guardian, fourth floor! Lightning, join Lotus outside!” Jaune shouted as he began to dig through the debris. Both of his teammates acknowledged his order while he continued his task. He didn’t know how long he kept at it, but a few moments later he felt Pyrrha’s presence next to him. Without needing to ask for permission, she began to assist her partner and leader in excavating the door, and when enough was cleared she positioned herself to force the door open. She was beginning to hear the faint sounds of muffled screaming inside, causing her to force herself to push harder, and soon enough Jaune joined her in prying the door open. Burning debris was flung back against the wall as they did so, and both of them threw out their last remaining freeze grenades to try and stem the fire as much as they could.

“Hello?!” Pyrrha screamed as she and Jaune searched room to room. They heard a shout coming from a closed-off room, and Jaune immediately kicked it open violently to force themselves inside. There they saw a small family, a mother holding an infant while a young daughter begged her father to get up. The man had a severe head wound and was lying face down on the floor, but Pyrrha’s helmet detected a faint pulse. When the family saw the two heroes, they instinctively recoiled, but both Jaune and Pyrrha held up their hands in a placating gesture.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Jaune said as he knelt down to check on the family. All of them had burns on their bodies, but they were relatively minor compared to what they could have been. He wanted to ask them some questions, but getting them out took precedence. He walked over to the nearest window and forced it open. Looking down, he scowled at the sight of a destroyed fire escape, and then turned back towards the family.

“We’re going to get you out of here, okay?” he told them, holding out his arms in a beckoning gesture. The mother looked at him for a moment then turned back to look at the fire. She then nodded before shakily getting to her feet and walking over to him. Jaune attached a line to her and shot links to the ceiling and street below. He saw Ren run over to meet her at the opposite end, and then sent her and her tightly clutched infant below. Pyrrha, carrying the unconscious father over her shoulders, looked at Jaune for a moment. Even behind her helmet, he knew the look on her face, and it was not good.

“Papa!” the young girl cried as she reached out for him. Jaune held her back as Pyrrha prepared to zip down to the street, only to stop as an ominous groan came from above. Everyone looked up towards a suddenly cracked ceiling, a noticeable bulge forming in the center.

“Oh, shi—” Jaune began just as the roof began to collapse. The girl screamed in fear as she instinctually ducked and covered her head, only for Jaune to jump in front of her and Pyrrha and catch the roof with his hands. He groaned and struggled under the weight, his legs shaking under the stress, but he pushed back as hard as he could.

Not turning back to his partner, he shouted, “Go!” to her at the top of his lungs. Pyrrha responded by grabbing the girl and zipping down to the street, expertly managing to hold onto both an unconscious full-grown man as well as a terrified five-year old girl. Jaune held out for a little while longer, and once he saw them make it to the ground he released his hold while leaping out of the window. The roof collapsed behind him, starting a chain reaction that caused more and more of the building to collapse as he himself fell through the air. Unfortunately, he had put too much power into his jump, causing him to strike against the opposite building’s fire escape, denting it and causing him to flail slightly as he tumbled down, hitting several more objects before landing in a heap in the alley below. The collapsing building covered him in dust, and he groaned in pain as he finally checked his Aura. It was in the yellow, and he let out a dark chuckle before wincing.

“Ooh, I’m gonna feel that in the morning,” he grumbled before rising to his feet. As he did, Pyrrha ran into the alleyway and helped him to her shoulder before walking him to the street. Medics were loading the injured father into the ambulance alongside an unconscious Billy, the rest of his family watching Jaune and Pyrrha with grateful eyes before the closing ambulance doors sealed them off. They saw the other firefighters working to contain the last remnants of the flames, and with a silent nod the two of them zipped away before anyone could get to them. They joined Ren and Nora several rooftops over, and once together they let out a sigh they didn’t know they were holding.

“Okay, that was…intense,” Pyrrha stated, and the others nodded. They sat down to take a breather while watching the smoke rise into the air.

“Pyrrha,” Jaune began, “how certain are you and Nora that it was arson?”

“One-hundred percent,” she replied, looking down as she did. “Someone sabotaged the gas lines in such a way as to not only burn the whole building down but also ensured it wouldn’t just immediately explode.”

“Any idea who could have done it?” Ren asked, but Nora shook her head.

“No idea. The security camera was shattered when we got inside, almost as if someone beat it with a hammer.”

“We’ll see if Cyborg can’t manage to salvage anything that might tell us who did it,” Jaune stated before rising to his feet. The rest of his team did the same, and Jaune took a step before wincing once again. His team moved to help him, but he raised his hand and stopped them. As he did, more sirens sounded off in the distance, and the teenagers sighed.

“More work to do. _Yay…_ ” Nora complained, and the others couldn’t help but agree. As they ran off towards the sounds, they each hoped that, at the very least, the others weren’t having as hard of a time as they were.

* * *

 

Ruby remained silent as she laid prone across some scaffolding across from a run-down tenement building, Crescent Rose in her sniper-rifle configuration. Idly, she checked the ammo counter on the top right of her mask’s HUD, showing that she had five rubber bullets currently loaded into her magazine. It would be more than sufficient for what she and her team were dealing with right now. The radio chatter had made it sound like a standard domestic disturbance, but the sight of an enraged man holding his girlfriend and the man she was allegedly cheating on him with at gunpoint turned it into something much more serious. The police were roughly five minutes out, based off what her HUD was telling her, and thus far it hadn’t shown to be inaccurate.

She doubted that the hostages would last that long without someone intervening, which is where her team came in. She and Weiss had come up with the plan almost immediately. Blake would sneak in from an opening on the roof while Weiss, being the most diplomatic of the group, would try to talk him down. Yang was with her to act as immediate support, should the need arise, while Ruby kept her scope trained on the man at all times.

“ _Sir, you have every right to be upset,_ ” Weiss attempted to sooth the man, her voice carried over the comms, but he snarled towards the door.

“ _You’re damn right I do! He was my best friend!_ ” he shouted, stomping towards the hostages angrily. As he did, his large, muscular and tattooed body fell behind a wall, but Ruby’s scope enabled her to track his thermal signature with ease. Above him, creeping through an air duct, was Blake as she silently made her way above the hostages. Behind the wall was Yang, ready to burst through the moment things turned south. The man pointed his pistol at the image of a woman who recoiled in the corner she and another man were cowering in.

“ _Baby, I’m sorry! Please-!”_ she begged.

“ _Shut up! Shut up, shut up, shut up!_ ” he interrupted her. “ _How could you?! With him?!_ ”

“Yang, get ready,” Ruby quietly ordered as she chambered a round and flicked off the safety. Yang flashed a thumbs up in response, knowing that Ruby would see it through the wall.

Weiss, meanwhile, continued to try and calm the man down. “ _Sir, hurting them will not solve anything. It will only make things worse for everyone, including you.”_

The enraged man spun around towards the door, walking forward and stopping right outside of it. “ _Oh, really? Do you even know what they did?_ ”

“ _No, I do not, but I can assure you that whatever it is that they did, hurting them will not make you feel better.”_

_“I fuckin’ doubt that!”_ The man continued to rant, his back facing his hostages. Ruby watched as Blake silently removed a grate from the ceiling, allowing her to poke her head through. The hostages saw her, but Blake silenced them with a raised finger before she let herself down.

The Faunus hardly made a sound as she landed on her toes. She briefly looked to the still ranting man as he talked about how he dated the woman for years, only to not just have her cheat on him with his best friend but subsequently post pictures they had taken of themselves doing the act onto social media. Blake didn’t care to assume whether or not it happened, or why it may have happened. Right now, she and the rest of her team were focused on getting them out safely, and that was all that mattered.

As Weiss tried to keep the man calm, gently urging him to put the gun down and come out to her, Blake took stock of the situation. From what she could see, neither of them were physically hurt. An immense relief, considering the circumstances, but she was more than aware that the situation could drastically turn south at any moment. It was why she was purposefully putting herself in front of them as she worked, figuring that her Aura could take a shot. Blake quickly glanced back at the man, noticing that his figure appeared to be slightly calmer than before. At the very least, he was shouting less. She then glanced back at the terrified hostages and then the window, where she saw the railing of a fire escape before shaking her head. Trying to sneak them out while hoping he didn’t turn around was too risky, so she gently lowered her palm at the two to keep them low and quiet. They complied, and Blake subsequently pulled out Gambol Shroud and began to creep towards the hostage-taker, intending to disarm and subdue him.

“Sir, please,” Weiss softly spoke once again. “Put the weapon down and come on out. I promise I won’t hurt you, and we can get past this.”

“I…” the man spoke, his fist clenched around his pistol. Blake used this moment to carefully step forward, only for her step to make a large creaking noise as it stepped on a loose board. Everything turned into slow motion as Blake jumped back and aimed Gambol Shroud at the man, who himself was turning around in a start. His finger was on the trigger as he regarded Blake and his former hostages with surprise, his expression beginning to turn into unfiltered rage. Blake prepared to fire rubber bullets into him, but she never got the chance as a loud bang echoed through the room along with the sound of shattering glass. The man screamed in pain and clutched his wrist as his weapon flew across the room. At the same time, the wall next to them exploded as Yang burst through and sucker punched him, sending him crashing against the wall and causing him to collapse in a heap.

Everyone stared at each other. The entire thing had only taken a few scant seconds, and the silence was only broken by Weiss forcing the door open and moving inside.

“Is everyone okay?” she asked, and the two former hostages nodded.

“Ye… Yes, we’re okay,” the man said with a quiver as the woman slumped to her knees in relief. Blake was checking the man’s body, determining that he was thoroughly knocked out as she tied him up. The sound of distant sirens began to get closer, and she figured the police were only a minute out.

“What happened? I couldn’t quite figure out what was going on between his swearing and ranting,” Yang asked as Weiss administered first aid. The man and woman looked at each other with regret then sighed.

“Scott and I…,” the woman started, tears beginning to run down her face, “a week ago we got drunk and….made a terrible mistake. Some drunken photos were taken, but the next day we were horrified and deleted them. Tried to bury the whole thing and pretend it never happened.”

“Then how’d they get posted online?”

“I don’t know. I swear to God, I don’t know,” Scott declared as he looked upon his former friend with a mixture of anger and regret. “We only found out about it yesterday when he called us, shouting at the top of his lungs about us betraying him. Maggie got scared and stayed with me for the night, and…”

Scott couldn’t continue, and Weiss silently nodded empathetically. She then helped them to their feet and escorted them down to the front door as Yang and Blake continued to check everything. Blake was taking a blood sample while Yang was carefully putting the man’s weapon into an evidence bag.

“What’cha doing that for?” Yang asked her partner as they entered the fire escape.

“To check his blood-alcohol levels. I could smell it on his breath. Might help to explain why he lashed out.”

“So a belligerent drunk?” Blake nodded, and Yang sighed while shaking her head in disappointment. Yang then thought of her Uncle Qrow. She loved the man with all her heart, but he did tend to get drunk more often than not, more than either she or Ruby liked to admit, though he was usually just obnoxious when sloshed rather than angry. Her thoughts then drifted towards both her father and uncle, wondering what they were doing at this moment. Both of them had been inside Vale when it was bottled, but after that she had no idea what became of them.

‘ _Let’s save those thoughts for therapy,_ ’ Yang thought as she shook the dark thoughts away. She then looked up to her sister, who herself was waving at them from her perch.

“Hey, sis,” she said over the radio. “Nice shot, by the way.”

“ _Thanks, your wall breach was pretty sweet, too! I’m surprised you didn’t yell ‘Oh yeah!’ while you were at it, though._ ”

* * *

 

“By Jove, you American brats just don’t know when to quit!” Mad Mod shouted back as he raced through the labyrinth of shipping containers on his yellow moped, the Titans racing after him.

“Give it up, Mod!” Nightwing responded and threw a wing-ding at the smuggler, who ducked and pointed his cane at them. He pressed a button on its shaft, and a moment later a pair of high-powered guns popped out of the back of his ride along with a thick cloud of black smoke. The guns fired through the smokescreen at his pursuers, forcing Raven to hastily erected a shield wall to absorb the bullets, only stopping once the fire stopped. When she dissipated the shield, they cursed after noticing a distinct lack of Mod or his moped.

“You know,” Cyborg began while grinding his teeth, “I’m getting really tired of his cat-and-mouse game we’ve been playing.”

“You’re telling me,” Beast Boy said, pointedly turning into a cat and then a mouse to better illustrate. They had earlier spotted Mad Mod taking advantage of the current crime wave to steal some British artifacts on loan to the Jump City Archeological Museum, intending to sell them abroad to wealthy collectors. His attempt was thankfully thwarted, and they had been chasing him across town for the past thirty minutes, and by this point, his British slang and dry quips were beginning to get on their last nerves.

Nightwing quickly scanned their location before coming to a decision. “Star, M’gann, fly above and see if you can spot him. Cyborg, tap into the local surveillance. He couldn’t have gotten far. Beast Boy, Raven, we’ll keep on going ahead.”

The other Titans nodded and split off into their teams, Miss Martian and Starfire flying off high into the air in opposite directions while Cyborg rocketed off to a nearby electronics tower. Beast Boy, meanwhile, turned himself into a bloodhound and began to sniff the ground as the three of them searched for any signs of where Mad Mod might have gone.

“I see tire tracks,” Raven pointed out as they spotted a few skid marks. Nightwing knelt down and ran his fingers across the black marks, then tapped his domino mask to scan the unique treads. A moment later, he saw a crisscrossing path of tracks, and he sighed.

“Somehow, I knew it wouldn’t be that easy. BB, see if you can’t get a scent.” Beast Boy nodded then went back to sniffing. Raven, meanwhile, reached out empathically to try and find the British smuggler. She began to feel the increased stress of the city, the rising fear and anger at what was going on, and pretty soon her body began to tremble from the stress of trying to keeping those feelings out. Nightwing noticed this, and placed his hand comfortingly on her shoulder.

“Rae, stop,” he said, and Raven looked at him for a moment before complying. At once, the negative feelings of the city ebbed away. She could still feel them in the back of her mind, but they were no longer as pronounced. She breathed heavily for a few moments before looking back at her two concerned friends, then smiled.

“I’m okay,” she declared, and Beast Boy whined for a moment before going back to what he was doing before. Nightwing, meanwhile, continued to look at Raven, causing the half-demon to slightly frown. “I said I’m fine.”

“Raven, please,” Nightwing countered in a gentle, soft tone. “You’re my friend, and I couldn’t consider myself your leader if I couldn’t see that something’s bothering you. What’s wrong?”

Raven sighed and looked down. “Just for the record, you psychoanalyzing everything and refusing to take things at face value _really_ gets annoying at times.”

“It’s a gift,” Nightwing joked, and Raven couldn’t help but smirk for a moment. Nightwing smiled at her expression before allowing her the chance to speak. A long pause ensued, where the only sounds were that of a dog’s rampant sniffling and the beating of machinery, before finally being broken by Raven.

“… It’s the city,” she explained. “This crime wave… It’s causing people to feel a lot more negativity than normal, making it hard to concentrate. It feels like a constant headache that occasionally turns into a migraine. For as useful as it is, sometimes I really hate being an empath.”

“Do you need to take a few days?”

Raven shook her head, “No, I’ll be fine after a few hours of meditation.”

“You sure? If you want, you can join M’gann with the others tomorrow. I’m certain they’d be happy to have you.”

“No, that’s for them. I’m not going to intrude on that.” Raven paused as she looked over Beast Boy, watching as his tail wagged back and forth excitedly. It appeared he had begun to pick up the beginnings of a trail, and Raven smiled warmly at the sight.

“… If that’s what you want,” Nightwing finally responded before placing his hand on her shoulder once again. “Just know that we’re here if you want to talk.”

Raven looked back at her leader and nodded. “I know.”

Anything else that either of them were going to say was cut off when Beast Boy began to howl, announcing he had found a trail. Immediately, the other two heroes raced towards him, but Raven paused for a moment when she felt something staring at her from behind. She looked across the row of shipping containers to see three objects that were most peculiar. She couldn’t make out any details, but they almost looked like cloaked figures.

“What the…?” she wondered before Nightwing shouted for her to catch up. Raven looked back towards her leader to respond, then looked back to where the supposed figures were standing. They were gone, and Raven’s alarm grew slightly. She forced herself to shake those thoughts away then flew back towards her friends.

‘ _Definitely going to meditate after this,_ ’ she reasoned. Pretty soon, her comms began getting flooded by reports courtesy of Cyborg. He had managed to isolate a unique transponder used by Mad Mod, tracking him to the far end of the shipyard. Starfire and M’gann were already racing towards him, as was herself and Nightwing as they followed Beast Boy. Pretty soon they came across Mad Mod as he jumped aboard his craft, and a hastily transformed Beast Boy couldn’t help but let out a groan at what the smuggler had chosen.

“Seriously, a yellow submarine? Dude, can you not get any more stereotypical?” he chastised, and the incensed looking Mad Mod haughtily spat at Beast Boy.

“Don’t you dare besmirch the Beatles!” he yelled as he pointed his cane at the heroes. At once, a large missile pod turned and pointed at them before firing a barrage. The heroes scattered, Raven constructing another wall as Starfire fired starbolts into the missiles, destroying many alongside M’gann, who herself had flown down and grabbed one of them and hurled it with a spin into the ocean, where it exploded harmlessly. Cyborg ran around a wall of shipping containers and fired his sonic cannon at the missile pod, aiming to disable it. Mad Mod snarled and pressed another button on his cane, causing a minigun to deploy out of the top of the submersible and begin firing at Cyborg. A few rounds ricocheted off his metal frame harmlessly, but still he dove behind cover, Beast Boy right beside him.

“Guys, we could use some help over here!” Cyborg shouted as he took a pot shot at the minigun, only for the barrage to force him back into cover. M’gann, heeding his call, flew towards the weapon, turning herself intangible and allowing the bullets to phase through her harmlessly as she approached then grabbed it. With the weapon still firing, she turned it towards the center of the yellow submarine, forcing Mad Mod to dive away as the bullets pinged against the metal hull before finally firing at the missile pod. The high-caliber rounds tore through the mod’s electronics, causing it to short-circuit and die, halting its automated reloading sequence dead in its tracks. She then ripped the minigun off its hinges and threw it into the bay before staring Mad Mod down with a hard expression.

Mad Mod, rather than appear sheepish, merely dusted himself off and sneered at her. He moved to press the button on his cane once again, only for a green hawk to swoop down and snatch the object from his hands. Surprised, he could only watch as the hawk flew over and landed on Miss Martian’s shoulder, dropping the cane into her waiting hands. She smirked triumphantly at his suddenly nervous expression, especially once Raven destroyed the engines with a swath of purple magic and Starfire hefted the submarine out of the water and deposited it on the concrete with a loud clang. The rest of the Titans soon surrounded him, and the criminal chuckled awkwardly.

“Heh heh, well… How’s about we just pretend this little episode never happened, eh? For old time’s sake?” he offered, but the Titans regarded him coldly and shook their heads.

When the police finally arrived, they only saw an oddly dressed and balding middle-aged man handcuffed to a lopsided yellow submarine, and many were left scratching their heads at the sight.

“Mod, why do you insist in playing up that image?” one of the officers asked.

“Sod off.”

“You’re not helping your case.”

* * *

 

By the time the heroes finished for the night and made it safely back to Titans Tower, they were all thoroughly exhausted. Hardly any of them had the strength to make it up the stairs, yet they persisted nonetheless. In the end, Raven teleported them to the main floor, allowing them to walk into their rooms and collapse onto their beds. Sleep came almost immediately, all except for Raven. The half-demon was tossing and turning for some time before finally managing to doze off.

Dead to the outside world, she never noticed two pairs of red eyes glaring at her for a brief moment through her vanity’s mirror that disappeared almost as soon as they arrived.

[~][~]


	18. Hunters of Justice Chibi - 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yet more Chibi goodness! RWBY and JNPR wonder what might have been, Raven tries to meditate, and both teams discover a new peculiarity about their new world regarding sounds.

_*Happy, up-tuned, jingly version of Justice League theme*_  
  
Hunters of Justice Chibi!  
  
[~][~]  
  
_Planetary Options_ by Jesse K

* * *

Ruby was reading some comic books, which rather than being predominantly about superheroes like back on Remnant, seemed to mostly feature things like pirates and fantasy worlds, or even pirates  _in_  fantasy worlds. After seeing Boofy beat down the evil pirate and/or world government agent of the week, she set her comic aside and looked at her friends deservingly lounging about.

“Guys, I got to thinking…about if we ended up on another planet instead of Earth. What would it have been like?”

“What do you mean, Rubes?” Yang asked as she looked up from her video game.

“Like, what if we ended up on, uh, what was Starfire’s planet?”

“Tamaran?” Blake recalled from her memory.

“Yeah. What if the boomtube took us there?”

“Well, going by Kori’s description…”

* * *

 

Teams RWBY and JNPR fell onto the planet surface, each bruised and battered. Several orange-gold people flew in and one began to poke at an unconscious Jaune, who twitched with each probe.

“These are odd little things. Should we get rid of them?” some guy asked.

“No, let’s keep them around. They look like fun.”

* * *

 

“Look we can’t understand a word you’re saying,” Ruby tried to explain to the aliens… Or were they the aliens in this situation?

“Okay,” Yang called attention to herself while holding her hand up and gesturing to her mouth. “You need to do more than-” A woman suddenly planted one right on her, surprising the girl and causing Ruby to gasp, Blake to blush, and everyone else to stare slack-jawed. The woman wore a smug grin as she separated from the blushing-like-mad blonde and hummed before speaking.

“Now we should be able to speak more clearly to each other. Hello, and welcome to Tamaran!”

* * *

 

“Aren’t they supposed to be a warrior race?” Jaune asked.

“Yeah, but I have no idea who they’re fighting,” Yang admitted. “Unless it’s each other. Ooh, maybe they’d have tournaments and stuff!”

“Why were you the one to get kissed by the Tamaranean?” Weiss asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Because it was my imagination.” Nora then zipped over to her.

“So you were fantasizing about-”

“Lalala, what about another planet?” Ruby interrupted, not wanting to hear about her sister’s fantasies of making out with people, supposed or otherwise.

“I heard Thanagar’s cool,” Blake pointed out. “Even if their current standing with Earth is…less than stellar.”

“Didn’t they try to destroy Earth because it was in the way of a big shield?” Jaune asked, kinda-sorta but not really remembering the paragraph or two about that situation.

“What was with that, anyways?” Weiss asked no one in particular. “They couldn’t have just made the shield slightly bigger or slightly smaller?”

“None of us are exactly experts on alien technology,” Blake pointed out. “But I can’t help but wonder what their planet would be like…”

"From what Shayera told us," Ren stated while sipping on a cup of tea, "the Thanagarians would either conscript us into their military or shuffle us off into the Downside slums on the surface, most likely the latter."

* * *

 

The teens fell through and onto the surface of Thanagar, only to be quickly surrounded by flying people with electrified maces.

“Intruders?” one asked.

“Or filthy refugees. Let’s take them in and let the council decide what to do with them.

* * *

 

_An imaginary amount of time later…_

“After having physically examined you all, it has been decided that you will serve in the Thanagarian army, or be confined to a factory in the Downside. Make your choice.”

“Well…we’re already fighters,” Ruby reasoned. “Can’t be that bad.”

* * *

 

_More imaginary time later…_

The eight were practically bawling at the sight of the burning and crumbling alien city nearby, but then they came across one of the tiny, wide-eyed, bunny-like locals being overtaken by the Thanagarian army, holding nothing more than a rickety shield and a stick for weapons.

“Pl-pl-please don’t hurt me or my family!” he begged.

“Hey, slave soldiers!” a Thanagarian commander yelled at them. “Hurry up and beat that Smeerp into submission and move on! We've got a dozen more cities to conquer!”

Nora sniffed and readied her Nth metal hammer replacement, wincing as she stood before the hopeless Smeerp. “I’m…so…sorry,” she whispered.

* * *

 

The others all paused at Ren's statement, then shook their heads in relief at having missed such a fate.

“Moving on, you know what would be really weird?” Ruby jumped back in while bringing up a picture.

“Isn’t that the Green Lantern symbol?” Ren asked. “Is it Oa?”

“Nope, it’s Mogo. They’re a living, sentient planet  _and_  a Green Lantern!”

“How does that even work?” Weiss asked in confusion.

“I’unno,” her leader responded with a shrug. “But imagine if we ended up on them.”

* * *

 

RWBY and JNPR fell out of a boomtube onto the planet’s surface, but a green construct formed beneath them, letting them slide gently down rather than have a crash landing. Green constructs continued forming around them, moving them around and bandaging their wounds before setting them on top of comfortable, bed-shaped leaf piles. When they woke up, they noticed how they seemed to be in the middle of wilderness, yet the atmosphere felt absolutely perfect.

“Did we die?” Jaune asked worriedly while checking his body. Everyone else checked themselves as well, finding that they still felt some pain from their injuries.

**“Do not be alarmed!”**

Immediately, half the Remnantians screamed, Jaune's voice being both the loudest and the highest.

**“That was the opposite of what I asked.”**

“Who are you?! Where are you?! Where are we?!”

After calming the eight teens with some orange slices and soothing nature sounds, the voice explained that they were Mogo, a planet, and a Green Lantern. They then explained what Green Lanterns were and that they had already called a few of them to look into Remnant and come help the teams out. Until then, they were welcome to stay on their surface.

“Thanks for all the help, Mogo,” Ruby said to the planet once they were all settled.

A mountain a distance away made a smiley face.

* * *

 

“Is that how it works?” Weiss wondered.

“Don’t call them an it,” Ruby objected. “Mogo’s a person too, even if they’re a planet.”

“A planet that can change to suit the needs of whoever or whatever is living on its surface?” Blake asked.

“That’s what I read, yeah. Sounds awesome, right?”

“So Mogo could make an awesome beach right next to a peaceful jungle just south of a temperate, perfect weather area?” Yang smiled at the thought. “Sounds like paradise.”

“Isn’t there a paradise world where a bunch of gods live?” Nora then asked.

“New Genesis,” Pyrrha answered.

* * *

 

RWBY and JNPR almost splatting, but then several New Gods pop up and begin treating them.

* * *

 

“Eh, sounds boring,” Nora interrupted the scenario.

“Hey!” Ruby objected before puffing her cheeks. “I wanted to see what Pyrrha would have imagined.”

“Sorry,” Nora apologized before shrugging with her hands held up, “but as far as we know, it’s literally too peaceful for anything interesting to happen.”

“I'm pretty certain that isn't actually the case," Pyrrha quietly objected while Jaune patted her shoulder. Ruby, meanwhile, shook her head and pointed at Nora.

“But at least there aren’t bad guys causing grief and misery and killing dozens to hundreds of people,” the youngest pointed out.

“…Yeah, that’s fair.”

“At least we didn’t end up on its counterpart, Apokolips,” Pyrrha then pointed out.

Everyone shivered at that, but then Ruby went wide-eyed when she saw the scene transition coming up. “No no no no-”

* * *

 

RWBYJNPR fell, several lowlies cowered away or ran to avoid whatever kind of pain this would bring (since that’s all that ever happened to them) and then some parademons came up and started screeching at each other.

“(Can we eat them?)”

“(Nah, someone higher up the ladder might want them around. We should at least see what the Furies want.)”

“(We could just take ‘em to Granny?)”

“(Yeah, that’ll work.)”

* * *

 

The eight woke up in the care of Granny Goodness, whose very presence was disturbing them, on top of the moans of torment and screams of pain and/or frustration coming from seemingly every direction.

“Hello, children!” she began, cupping her hands together. “Oh, you poor things must have had quite the experience before landing on our world.”

“What the- Who are you?” Ruby asked in confusion.

“Just call me Granny, dearie.”

“Where are we? And what are you going to do with us?” Yang demanded before a shrill scream echoed out. “And what was that?”

“Oh, that was just one of the little ones at practice. Don’t mind them. As for where you are, you’re in my orphanage. And what I’m going to do… Well, I am known for training great warriors… But first, would anyone like a cookie?”

A platter of fresh-baked cookies was served before them by a green-haired woman with a crazed, twitchy look. The trainee Huntsmen approached it, and Nora picked one up with a scoff. “Oatmeal raisin?” she echoed most of the team’s sentiments.

“Oh come on guys!” Ruby decried, picking one up. “Oatmeal raisin cookies are still great. Not the best kind in the world, but compared to no cookies at all…” She stuffed one into her mouth and began chewing before her eyes went wide and she started coughing. "What is this?!"

“Oh, but I do want you children to be healthy,” Granny said with a wicked grin, “so I made the cookies sugar-free!”

“Noooooooo!” Ruby cried out as she collapsed to the ground and Granny Goodness cackled evilly.

~

"The horror...the horror..." Ruby whimpered while lying on the ground in the fetal position, Yang comfortingly patting the young cookie lover's head.

[~][~]

 _Meditation_ by Trestwho

* * *

 

In the dark silence of her room, Raven Roth sat cross-legged on top of her bed. Her eyes were closed, and her arms were stretched to the side and slightly curved upwards as she began to meditate.

“Azarath…Metrion…Zinthos…” she chanted, slowly beginning to levitate off the ground. The outside world began to drift away into a sea of nothingness, and Raven sighed contently.

“Yo, BB!” Nora suddenly shouted from the kitchen, knocking Raven out of her meditative trance and causing her to flop back down on her bed. As the half-demon grumpily stared at her door, she could hear Nora continue. “I made breakfast!”

“Sweet! I’ll be down there in a bit!” Garfield shouted back from his room. Raven could hear his door being opened and his feet hitting the ground as he walked towards the kitchen, and when they finally became fully muffled the girl shook her head and began to mediate once more.

“Azarath…Metrion…Zin—” she said as her body once again began to levitate, but Garfield’s sudden shouting caused her to fall back down.

“What are those?!” Garfield accused, his voice slightly angry at whatever Nora had cooked up.

“Pancakes, silly!”

“I thought you were going to make waffles!”

“Yeah, well, pancakes are infinitely better, so I went with those!”

As the two continued to argue over whether pancakes were superior to waffles – they weren’t, in Raven’s humble opinion – Raven attempted to go back in her meditative state. She was admittedly finding it harder to do so, but eventually Raven was able to drown out their voices somewhat.

“Azarath…Met—"

Just then, Raven was interrupted yet again by the sound of clicking heels, signaling Weiss’ entrance into the kitchen.

“Yang Xiao Long! What did I tell you about using my stuff?” Weiss asked, her shrill voice hurting Raven’s ears.

“Oh, come on, Elsa!” Yang replied in a joking tone. “I couldn’t find mine, and yours was right there.”

“Okay, one. My hairbrush is not a community item. Two, stop calling me Elsa!”

“I thought you liked that movie and the message it told?”

“That’s beside the point!”

Raven gritted her teeth and strained to block out the noise, her brow noticeably twitching in annoyance. After a few moments, with the sounds of pointless arguing still going on in the background, Raven began to mediate once more.

“Azara—”

Just then, the voice of Jaune cut through everyone else’s, “Hey, have any of you seen my-?”

The remainder of Jaune’s statement was cut short as a now visibly angered Raven teleported into the main room. Her skin was blood-red, and four red eyes stared at everyone with enough hatred that everyone felt the temperature in the room rise a few degrees.

“WILL YOU BE QUIET!?” Raven roared, her voice echoing with demonic energy. “I HAVE HAD IT WITH YOUR USELESS PRATTLING! I AM TRYING TO RELAX, BUT I CAN’T DO THAT WITH YOU IDIOTS RUNNING YOUR MOUTHS ABOUT YOUR INSIGNIFICANT PROBLEMS!!!”

For a moment, everyone stared at the seething half-demon, unsure of what to say that wouldn’t make her angrier. Raven, meanwhile, continued to breathe deeply while staring deep into everyone’s souls. The Titans, Huntsmen, and Huntresses stared right back, before finally Ruby quietly coughed.

“…okay…” she whispered, and at once Raven turned back into her normal grey hue.

“Thank you,” she said. Raven then turned back around and walked back into her room, closing the door behind her. The others all stared at the door for a long while, still trying to process exactly what had occurred, when Nora looked over everyone.

“Geez, what’s her problem?”

[~][~]

 _Onomato-POW-a!_ by Trestwho

* * *

 

“Stop right there, thief!” Yang yelled as she and the rest of teams RWBY and JNPR chased after a hapless thief through a dark alleyway.

“You’ll never catch me!” the thief replied as he continued to run.

“You better hope so! ‘Cuz if I do, I’m gonna hit you so hard that words will fly out!”

The others paused at Yang’s threat, slowing down and allowing her to press forward without them. They watched with raised eyebrows and confused expressions before turning to face each other.

“… ‘Words will fly out’?” Ruby finally asked. “What does that even mean?”

The others thought for a moment before shrugging, chalking Yang’s statement up to simple nonsense before racing back after her. As they neared, they began to hear sounds of fighting, telling them that Yang had caught up to the hapless thief and had begun to beat him down.

“Hey, save some for-!” Nora yelled out as they rounded a corner, just as Yang threw a haymaker into the thief’s jaw.

_POW!_

As Yang’s fist connected, the others stared slack-jawed as an ethereal ‘pow!’ was spelled out in mid-air, surrounded by a spiked circle. For a moment, both fighters looked as though they paused mid-punch, almost in emphasis, before flowing back into motion. The man flew back into a steel dumpster, groaning before falling into unconsciousness. Yang smirked and cracked her knuckles, not noticing the small words popping out of her hands, before turning to face her stunned teammates.

“Oh, hey guys. What’s up?” she asked. Ruby tried to speak, unable to form the words. The others were in a similar state, and Yang looked upon them in confusion before her eyes widened in realization.

“Oh, you guys saw the words fly out, didn’t you?” At her statement, the others silently nodded, still in shock, and Yang chuckled. “Yeah, I acted the exact same way when I first saw them. I remember it like it was just yesterday…”

* * *

 

_Yesterday_

“Come on, Nightwing! Hit me!” Yang gestured towards herself as Nightwing pumped his fists. The two were in the Titans’ training room, and they’d been going at it for quite some time.

“Alright, here it goes!” Nightwing declared as he reared his fist back as far as he could and socked Yang across the jaw.

_WHAM!_

As soon as his fist connected with Yang’s face, the word ‘WHAM!’ erupted out over the two fighters. The world paused for a moment as if in emphasis, and before Yang could even comprehend what had just occurred she was lying on her back, staring up as the words slowly dissipated.

“Come on, Yang. Don’t leave me hanging!” Nightwing stated as he jumped from foot to foot. Yang, meanwhile, continued to lay on her back in stunned silence before throwing up her arms.

“WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?!”

* * *

 

“Yeah, as it turns out, if you make enough noise here the words just come out of nowhere. It’s pretty neat, actually.”

“Huh,” Ruby said as she tested out their latest discovery. She was hitting a dumpster with Crescent Rose, watching in amazement as tiny ‘bang!’ words appeared with each impact. She giggled at the sight. Around her, the rest of her friends – except for an unamused Weiss currently attending to the tied-up thief – were also testing the phenomenon, and all of them were amazed.

“So,” the thief began as he glanced between the teenagers, “can I go now, or…?”

“No.” Weiss interrupted.

“Ah, man.”

Weiss rolled her eyes and rested her hand on her hip. “Guys, can we hurry this up?”

None of her friends acknowledged her, content to mess around with more sound effects. Weiss ground her teeth, ignoring the spiky lines ejecting from the sound, and stomped her foot against the ground.

“Guys!”

Again, her friends either ignored or didn’t hear what she said. A vein visibly throbbed on her forehead, and Weiss leaned back before thrusting herself forward.

“GUYS, WILL YOU SERIOUSLY STOP MESSING AROUND?!” Weiss yelled at the top of her lungs. At once, the others stopped and winced at her shrill voice, and once it was over they rubbed the inside of the ears and glared at Weiss.

“Geez, you don’t need to yell,” Ruby noted, but Weiss scoffed and shook her head.

“Yes, I did. None of you were listening, and unlike you I’d like to get home.”

“Still didn’t have to yell. We would have stopped soon.”

“Besides,” Nora cut in, “we could have just read your speech bubble.”

“Yeah, we could have—” Ruby stopped herself before turning abruptly to stare at Nora. The excitable woman was looking at everyone with a blissful smile on her face, and Ruby couldn’t help but scratch her head.

“Um, read her wha?” Jaune finally asked, and Nora giggled while pointing above Weiss’ head.

“That, silly!” Everyone followed Nora’s hand to see a bubble ejecting from Weiss’ head. Inside were the words she had just spoken, and they could only watch as the word bubble slowly dissipated.

 _‘…I swear, this place just gets weirder by the day,’_  Blake thought.

“Eh, it’s not so bad,” Nora responded, causing Blake’s eyes to widen. Almost as if answering the Faunus’ unspoken question, Nora pointed above Blake’s head where a box containing Blake’s thoughts hovered. Everyone stared at it for a moment.

“…Huh. Neat,” Yang finally said before shrugging. She then walked over and hefted the bound criminal atop her shoulder and smiled. “Well, let’s get a move on. This guy won’t turn himself in.”

“You don’t know that. Maybe I will.”

“Sure, you will, buddy. Sure, you will.”

With that, Yang began to walk off with a jaunty tune, the others standing still as they were unsure how to proceed. After a moment, Ruby shrugged and folded her weapon behind her.

“Come on, guys! No sense freaking out over it now!” Ruby announced as she followed her sister. One by one, the others followed her example and left, until only Weiss remained.

“…I swear, she’s like a child sometimes in how innocent she is,” Weiss whispered under her breath.

“I read that!” Ruby shouted back, and Weiss sighed.

_‘Is this how it’s going to be from now on?’_

**To Be Continued…**

“Wait, what? Who said that?!”

[~][~]


	19. Batcomputer Files - Analysis 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Batman analyzes Weiss Schnee as well as the psychological development of team RWBY as a whole.

**_Accessing Batcomputer Archives_ **

**_Username: Dark Knight_ **

**_Password: **********_ **

**_…_ **

**_…_ **

**_Welcome, Batman. Please select file for review:_ **

**_…_ **

**_…_ **

**_Selection: Analysis on Remnantians: Weiss Schnee_ **

**_Accessing Archive_ **

**~**

Name: Weiss Schnee

Age: 17

Species: Remnantian

Alias: Ivory Mage

Equipment: Myrtenaster, a six-cylinder chambered rapier. Each cylinder houses a different material for use in conjunction with her Semblance, with which a variety of effects can be achieved including pyrokinesis, cryokinesis, and more. Previously utilizing various types of Dust, upon Weiss’ arrival to Earth her remaining Dust stores were rendered inert. As such, Myrtenaster’s fuel has been changed to locally made specialty fuels, including cryogenic gas developed by Victor Fries { _see Mr. Freeze_ } and fuel developed from a mixture concocted by Garfield Lynns { _see Firefly_ }.

Semblance: Glyphs, aka Schnee Family Semblance: Capable of a wide range of various effects. Default state appears to be platform creation, which Weiss can manipulate. When used in conjunction with certain fuels, Glyphs can be further modified into more advanced configurations. According to Weiss’ testimony, her sister Winter Schnee, a lieutenant in the Atlesian military, was capable of even conjuring Grimm she had personally slain in combat as familiars in a process called Summoning. 

Bio: The former heiress of the presumably defunct Schnee Dust Company, Weiss Schnee is the second borne child and daughter of the Schnee family. Her father, Jacques Schnee, was the CEO of the SDC, and under his leadership not only did the company grow to become the single largest corporate entity on Remnant, it did so by utilizing ruthless monopolistic and ‘questionable’ labor standards that scarred both the company’s image and her family’s legacy. Rather than continue her father’s unethical practices into perpetuity, Weiss decided to become a Huntress to try and restore the legacy of her grandfather, the founder the Schnee Dust Company, Nicholas Schnee.

Strengths:

Expert Fencer: Weiss Schnee has proven herself to be a masterful fencer, capable of utilizing her swordplay to dispatch weak points in an enemy’s defense and bring them down with precision. In addition, Weiss is highly agile and can dodge most enemy attacks rather than let them hit her.

Semblance Utilization: Perhaps more than any single fighter among the Remnantians, Weiss’ mastery and usage of her Semblance is unsurpassed. To the point where its usage has become an integral part of her overall fighting strategy. Its variability offers her more options in combat, which she uses to her fullest advantage. It is telling that in many of Ruby Rose’s plans, Weiss and her Semblance are key lynchpins in the plan’s success.

Intelligence: Weiss, more than the rest of her team, has managed to readily absorb information far more quickly than her peers. Moreover, Weiss has proven herself to have a keen analytical mind, capable of drawing conclusions and planning accordingly, often only needing a small prodding or inclination to do so.

Weaknesses:

Durability: Weiss, despite her agility, is among the least durable of RWBYJNPR. Tougher enemies who can shrug off her blows while dealing high amounts of damage can and have dispatched her before. Given her reliance on her Semblance for combat, should her Aura shatter she is immediately placed into a greater disadvantage in battle.

Pride and Arrogance: Despite her skill and intelligence, Weiss has demonstrated a great deal of pride and at times arrogance of her own abilities. According to testimony from her team, at the formation of team RWBY Weiss was highly upset at herself being ‘passed over’ for a leadership position, the title of team leader falling to Ruby Rose instead. This reportedly generated a great deal of friction, and although the two have moved well past that, her pride occasionally flares up and causes her to become overconfident in her abilities, placing herself in danger.

Over-reliance on her Semblance: Moreso than anyone else, Weiss’ combat ability depends on her Semblance being functional. She needs it to operate Myrtenaster’s auxiliary functions, and her combat style calls upon fusing her fencing and Semblance into a seamless dance. Should her Aura break, which is liable to happen to due to her lower durability and endurance, she will be unable to fight at full effectiveness. At the same time, she has not yet mastered the Summoning characteristic of her Semblance, leaving her at less than full potential for combat ability.

Hand to Hand Combat: Weiss has limited combat capabilities regarding traditional martial arts beyond her swordplay. As such, should she be disarmed, she is immediately placed into a disadvantage, especially given how she uses Myrtenaster as a focus for her Semblance.

Areas for Training:

Endurance training to increase durability.

Lessons with League-allied magic users { _including Zatanna, Dr. Fate, Raven, and Etrigan the Demon_ } to bring about Summoning capabilities for Semblance

Reduce dependence on Semblance for combat

Hand-to-hand combat training

Decrease dependence on weapon as Semblance focus

**~**

**_Access Level Black_ **

**_Require Secure Login to Access_ **

**_Password: ***********************_ **

**_Access Granted_ **

**_~_ **

Strategy for Subdual:

Should Weiss Schnee be placed under-mind control or otherwise forced into opposition against the League, shattering her Aura maintains top priority. This will deprive her of her Semblance and ability to maximize her weapon’s effectiveness. Heavy blows should be able to diminish her Aura quickly, which could be achieved either through melee combat or explosive ordinance.

Efficient armor placement around joints, hands, face, and other critical combat areas that can resist slices and stabs should be able to mitigate her fencing’s effectiveness. Work on improving armors accordingly.

Disarming Weiss of her weapon would disable her, depriving her of much of her latent combat ability.

Progress on Aura-draining nanite nearing completion. Preliminary results promising, and computer simulations indicate it should work, but won’t know full effectiveness until use in field, which will not occur unless absolutely necessary. Once completed and manufactured, attention will shift towards Project: HUNTER-BAT suit and equipment.

[~][~]

**_Accessing Batcomputer Archives_ **

**_Username: Dark Knight_ **

**_Password: **********_ **

**_…_ **

**_…_ **

**_Welcome, Batman. Please select file for review:_ **

**_…_ **

**_…_ **

**_Selection: Training and Acclimation – Progress Report: Team RWBY_ **

**_Accessing Archive_ **

**~**

**Members:** Ruby Rose (leader), Weiss Schnee (Second-in-Command), Blake Belladonna, Yang Xiao Long

**Huntsmen Academy:** Beacon Academy, Vale

**Analysis and Formation:** Formed during Beacon Academy’s last Initiation session, in which students were hurled via catapult into the mildly Grimm-infested Emerald Forest (side note: methodology has inherent risks, but when controlled and with risks properly mitigated against, it has proven to be successful), Team RWBY was notable even among their peers for their rather unique composition as well as exceptional performance. Both in academics and combat ability, the team quickly rose through their class’ ranks to become its highest performer, even able to theoretically beat teams of later years due to natural talent, strength, and most importantly, team composition.

Ironically, despite the overall system of combat schools across Remnant feeding into the Huntsmen Academies, only two members of Team RWBY ever went to one. Ruby and Yang both went to Signal Academy before being accepted into Beacon, while Blake was taught by skilled fighters in the White Fang terrorist organization and Weiss was taught personally by some of the greatest tutors in Atlas. Regardless of how they learned to fight, their team’s composition allowed them to cover each other’s weaknesses while focusing on their unique strengths, turning them into an effective fighting force in almost no time at all while tightening their bonds into that of an intense familial connection. Their abilities were appropriately noticed by Beacon’s faculty, as Professor Ozpin himself allowed the students to participate in a mission that was intended for students several years their senior (incidentally, said mission directly led to the events of _The Breach of Vale_ ).

**Acclimation and Psychological/Therapeutic Progress:** As with Team JNPR { _see Training and Acclimation – Progress Report: Team JNPR for further details_}, RWBY’s arrival to Earth has resulted in each of them acquiring Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Symptoms exhibited thus far include:

  * Nightmares
  * Flashbacks
  * Involuntary Muscle Movement
  * Psychological Distress Towards the Subject of Alien Invasion
  * Mood Swings
  * Daily Routine Realignment – Increased intensity of training regimes from previous reported routines from Beacon



All these symptoms were most heavily pronounced during their first few weeks with the Justice League. I am happy to report that, thanks to their efforts and the help of Diana and M’gann (alongside other qualified League therapists), the symptoms have been greatly mitigated. All have reported decreases in frequency of flashbacks and nightmares from at least once a day to once every week at most. Scenes of alien invasion in various forms of media, although still causing mild discomfort, no longer cause psychological distress. Case in point, when Flash decided it was a good idea to show team RWBY and JNPR _Star Wars Episode IV_ for the first time, they were unable to finish after Alderaan’s destruction. After a few weeks of unrelated therapy, they were able to come back and finish the movie. Ruby and Jaune have particularly taken a fondness to it.

However, progress is still ongoing. Each member of team RWBY still exhibits signs of PTSD, and J’onn J’onzz believes they will continue to do so for a least several more years. As their caretakers, it is our responsibility to ensure that they feel supported and secure on their path to complete recovery. Diana, during her sessions with the teams, has repeatedly stressed that although they may have experienced traumatic events, they are not necessarily controlled by them. On that front, team RWBY has been adapting excellently.

Culturally, team RWBY has readily adapted to Earth culture, both civilian and superhero. Their time with the Titans has greatly helped in this regard. They have learned the basics of Earth’s history, both natural and human history, obtained a complete grasp of the English language (Weiss herself has taken it upon herself to try and learn other languages, including French and German, in her spare time, and is making remarkable progress towards their mastery), and have begun to adapt to Earth’s cultural norms. Holidays and important calendar-related events still elude them currently; however, I do not anticipate it being long before they manage to fully understand them. According to Nightwing, the teams are most excited for the holidays of Halloween and Christmas, the former because it just so happens to fall on the same day as Ruby’s birthday and Christmas for the overall concept. { _Note: compiled list of gifts for both events seen_ here _._ }

Regarding their acclimation into Earth’s superhero community, the group has taken it upon themselves to adopt a secret identity. Cyborg stated that, at first, the names they selected were simply for fun, but after going through Jump City as normal individuals despite their heroics and enjoying a normal day without harassment they’ve decided to embrace the concept. Daily progress reports from the team indicate that they see the hero personas to keep the spotlight off themselves, which they presently are uncomfortable with at best, while continuing their heroic calling in life.

In Conclusion, team RWBY has been progressing remarkably well since their arrival on Earth. They have proven to be exceptionally strong-willed women who, despite the intense trauma they have endured, continue striving to keep moving forward with their lives. Remnant’s destruction may have left permanent scars on them, but thus far they have refused to let said trauma control and dictate how they live their lives. I suspect that this is in large part not due to the efforts of the League but simply having both teams RWBY and JNPR manage to survive Remnant’s destruction together and remaining intact.

**Training:** I can report that team RWBY’s progress in scaling down their normal scale of combat to a non-lethal variant has proven to be successful. However, I have noted that, although the team does show an extreme reluctance to do so, should seemingly no other option present itself in the defense of an innocent they will employ lethal force as an absolute last resort. Odds of lethal force increase should someone they know/are friends with be harmed severely. I suspect their training as Huntresses and Brainiac’s Invasion has led to this mindset. Will need to work with closely to curb any tendencies before they run the risk of going too far.

The team has thus far managed to adapt their weapons to Earth’s lack of Dust. Unfortunately, despite numerous tests by Lucius Fox at Wayne Enterprises, as well as other organizations around the world including S.T.A.R. Labs and LexCorp, the substance has been unable to be replicated. Lucius believes, however, that continued investment in Dust Replication research could prove to be worth it in the long run thanks to its various known and theoretical applications, an assessment I agree with. As such, research continues.

Until such progress in Dust Replication is made however, the team has continued to make due with what they have. Ruby herself has begun to create several modifications to her weapon, including specialized scopes and bullets for herself and the rest of her team. Weiss has continued to experiment in finding materials for Myrtenaster’s use. Recently she requested several pounds of powdered Nth Metal for experimentation purposes, intending to see if she can use the metal’s special properties in conjunction with her Semblance. I believe she intends for the substance to serve as a replacement for Earth Dust or perhaps for uses she hadn’t even thought of. Yang has begun taking flight simulator sessions due to a casualty she feels she inadvertently caused during their rescue attempt of Ruby. Blake has recently started experimenting with customized shuriken-style weapons inspired by Nightwing’s wing-dings after seeing their use up close in the field. Applications and modifications she has researched indicate that she first desires to create objects capable of shorting out electronics or tasering individuals without bringing attention to herself.

In conclusion, their training as a team is coming along nicely. Improvement can still be made on an individual basis, but their ability to coordinate as a team is top-notch.

**~**

**_Access Level Black_ **

**_Require Secure Login to Access_ **

**_Password: ***********************_ **

**_Access Granted_ **

**_~_ **

_Training Mishaps_

[Play Recording]

{YXL} _Yo, Cy? You sure these things work?_

{VS} _Yes, who do you think you’re talking to? I tested those guys out thousands of times. They work. Now, all you need to do is simply grapple up to that ledge over there. You don’t have your Gravity Dust to propel you forward by recoil alone._

{YXL} _Dude, I already know that. Why are you telling me this again?_

{VS} _Just putting it in the record. Ready?_

{YXL} **Shuffling sounds** _Ready._

{VS} _Alright, in three… two… one…_

** Grappling hook ejects, latches onto metal object with ‘pinging’ noise. Sound of wire retracting at high speed as YXL is pulled up towards ledge. **

{YXL} _Oh, shi-!_

** Clunking noise as YXL’s head hits ledge, followed by thud as she lands on ground. **

{VS} _Oh my god, Yang! Are you okay?_

** YXL answers by uproariously laughing. VS joins moments later. **

[ _Recording Ends_ ]

~

[Play Recording]

{WS} _Okay, first test of Burn Dust substitute ‘Firefly’._

{BM} _Remember, even though this is a more stabilized version of the compound, it’s still very volatile. I won’t hesitate to activate the emergency fire suppressant system if anything goes wrong._

{WS} _I know, I know! I can handle this just fine, I just need to concentrate without any distractions._ **Inhale, exhale. Sound of a glyph activating.** _Almost…got it…_

**Automatic sliding door is loudly slammed open, somehow.**

{RR} _Hey Weiss! I heard you were playing with some Dust replacements for Myrtenaster! Can I help?_

**Squawk of surprise from WS as glyph misfires and covers entire adjacent wall in flames.**

{WS} _What-?! Fire-! But-! RUBY!_

{RR} _Oh god, it’s the cake all over again!_

**Klaxon blares as fire suppressant foam is sprayed out of ceiling dispensers onto the wall, as well as both girls, muffling their yelling.**

{BM} _…Cake?_

[Recording Ends].

~

[Play Recording]

**Clinking noises as BB fiddles on shuriken-type object on worktable. Sparks briefly shoot out, followed by a sigh as she puts tools away.

{BB} _Alright, let’s see if this works…_

**BB picks up shuriken and looks at monitor on far side of room. Object is thrown and attaches itself to monitor, followed by sparks as device short circuits.**

{BB} _Yes!_ **BB fistpumps before quickly recomposing herself, looking around to see if anyone saw her.** _Just gonna pretend I didn’t do that…_

**BB picks up remaining shurikens. Objects touch each other, generating spark.**

{BB} _GA-!_ **BB’s body freezes as electrical current arcs through body. Singeing sound as hairs begin to fray, before ending as uneven body posture causes BB to fall to the ground face first. Clattering noises as shurikens release following impact.**

{BB} **Breathing heavily.** _Okay… Time for a break…_

**Thud as BB’s head drops back down.**

[Recording Ends]

[~][~]


	20. Finding the Trial

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> RWBY and JNPR undergo their latest therapy session while the Titans meet with an old friend, both investigating the origins of Jump City's crime wave.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 14: _Finding the Trail_ **

* * *

 

“Ugh,” Yang groaned as she continued to stir the eggs with one hand, using the other to shield her eyes from the light of the morning sun.  “When will this week _end_?”

“Saturday,” Blake dryly replied while laying down on the couch.

“Don’t you go smart on me, Blake.” Yang couldn’t help but lightly smile, and even though her back was turned to Blake, she could tell that the Faunus was amused. Yang then felt her smile drop as yet another tired sigh escaped her lips. “Seriously though. This week was just been non-stop.”

“Tell me about it, girl,” Garfield replied as he surfed through the tv, trying to find something mind-numbing to watch. “I haven’t worked this hard in years. I think Dick’s having Gotham Flashbacks.”

Yang sighed again before refocusing on the task at hand. Jump City’s crimewave was showing no signs of abating anytime soon. She and the others had been working themselves to the bone just to try and stem the tide, preventing the city from falling into outright chaos. The JPD themselves were working together with the Titans to try and stop it, and the only consolation everyone had was that, thus far, no major supervillains had been involved. Only losers, such as Killer Moth.

Nora almost clobbered his daughter though, when she tried to steal Ren as part of a jealousy ploy. That was an interesting sight, almost as interesting as when Pyrrha fainted at the sight of Kitty’s boyfriend, Fang. How a guy could survive with a literal spider for a head or be somehow able to make out with a normal human girl escaped her, and frankly she didn’t want to know. The memory of _that_ almost made her hurl just like Jaune did when it happened.

At least she can say that she punched a spider in the face, so she had that going for her.

“Do we have _any_ leads as to why this is happening?” Blake asked just as a groggy Ruby and Weiss shuffled into the kitchen. The former heiress sighed deeply as she made herself comfortable, pulling out her scroll to read the latest Daily Planet article. Her eyes briefly scanned the headline – ‘ _Crime Wave in Jump City_ ’ by Lois Lane – before beginning to read.

“Dick’s starting to come up with one,” Garfield answered, a frown forming on his face. “He hasn’t told me yet, but he’s usually on top of this kind of stuff. If he says someone’s behind all this, I believe him.”

The girls nodded at this before continuing with what they were doing before. They sat together in silence as the others trickled in, each showing signs of exhaustion. Koriand’r’s once pristine fiery hair was now disheveled and frayed, dark bags forming under her eyes. M’gann wasn’t much better, her body a whiter shade of green than normal as she struggled to keep her current form. Jaune and Pyrrha trudged in soon afterwards, the boy half-asleep while Pyrrha yawned heavily. Cyborg managed to appear mostly the same, yet the bag under his eye betrayed his current state. Ruby chalked it up to his being part robot, although she couldn’t help but notice he appeared to be distracted somehow.

None of them even compared to Raven’s current state, which drew everyone’s attention as she walked inside. A dark miasma seemed to form over her head, reflecting the storm of emotions swirling inside of her. Her eyes were lidded, with dark bags that seemed to be much deeper than everyone else’s. Raven’s arms were stiff and tucked against her body, and she was hunched over as she practically stomped over to the far side of the room. Everyone wanted to say something, but no one did. They weren’t quite sure how the half-demon would take it, but it was obvious that the stress of recent events was getting to her. Ruby felt a pang of guilt and pity course through her, only to sharply look away when Raven felt it and turned to glare at her.

“Eep!” Ruby squeaked, shoveling down her cereal to avoid Raven’s ire. Raven stared at her for a few more moments before sighing.

“Sorry, Ruby. I didn’t mean to do that,” she said, sinking further into her chair. “It’s just… I’m so tired…”

“Rae,” Garfield began, moving closer to her in order, “don’t worry. We’re your friends, and we understand completely.”

Raven looked towards everyone’s smiling faces and sighed before smiling as well. “Thank you.” She then turned to face Ruby and smirked knowingly. Ruby stared back half-confused, which only increased once the others caught on and began to look towards her as well. Kori was easily showing her excitement, bouncing up and down in her seat while M’gann smiled warmly.

“…What?” Ruby finally asked, and Yang chuckled.

“Don’t ‘what’ me. Don’t you remember what happens tomorrow?”

“…Halloween? Speaking of which, I’m really looking forward to that. I’m gonna be a vampire!”

Yang laughed heartily and shook her head. “No, silly, although that does sound pretty cool. I want you to think hard.”

Ruby narrowed her eyes and stared at her sister. She wondered what game her sister was getting at before Weiss groaned.

“Oh, for the love of – Your birthday’s tomorrow, Ruby,” Weiss finally stated. Ruby stared and blinked towards her partner for a few moments as her statement registered like a lightbulb turning on.

“Oh yeah, it is.” Ruby hummed and tapped her chin. “Huh, so much had been going on recently it must have slipped my mind.”

“Why am I not surprised,” Weiss groaned, causing Ruby to childishly puff out her cheeks. That changed to squawks of indignation when Kori could no longer contain her excitement and flew over to the red Huntress, grabbing hold of her tightly and spinning her around.

“Oh, yes! I am the most excited!” Kori exclaimed as she continued to spin Ruby around. “Friends M’gann, Garfield and I have been planning the festivities for the last week! There will be cake, and presents, and-!”

“Star!” Victor interrupted Koriand’r’s rambling. “I think Rube’s had enough.”

“Huh?” Kori looked down to see she was still holding a dizzy Ruby, a dazed expression on her face while her face appeared to be slightly green. With a gasp, Koriand’r gently placed Ruby on the ground, who wobbled in place before righting herself.

“I’m okay!” Ruby wobbled again, only for Kori to catch her. “I’m okay… Thank you…”

“I am most sorry!” Kori apologized, only for Ruby to wave her off.

“Eh, it’s fine. Don’t—”

Ruby was interrupted by a loud klaxon, indicating the Titans Tower’ intercom had just been turned on. Immediately, everyone’s attention was directed towards the speakers housed in the room’s ceiling, waiting for the announcement they had been waiting for all morning.

“ _Everyone, meet me in the conference room,_ ” Dick calmly announced then turned the intercom off. As soon as it did, the heroes rose out of their seats and made their way downstairs towards the heart of Titans Tower, stopping by a large set of sliding metallic doors. The doors opened automatically as they approached, leading to a circular room with a round table in its center and a large TV monitor embedded into the wall. At its head was Dick Grayson, dressed in his Nightwing uniform, displayed on the screen was a young red-haired woman wearing glasses and a green coat. The screen showed she herself was in a room filled to the brim with monitors and various other surveillance equipment, several of which continued to run in the background.

“RWBY, JNPR, I want you to meet Barbara Gordon, otherwise known as Oracle.” Nightwing announced as Barbara turned to face them. She smiled and waved at them, and the others waved back.

“Hey, Barbara. Name’s Yang,” Yang said. “This is my sister Ruby, my partner Blake, and Ruby’s partner, Weiss.”

“And I’m Jaune,” Jaune announced shortly before directing her to the rest of his team. “This is Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora.”

“It’s nice to meet you all,” Barbara replied. “I just wish I could meet you all in person.”

“So, you’re the one who was coordinating everything in Gotham,” Blake pointed out, clearly impressed. Barbara smiled and nodded, and Blake nodded back. “I’m impressed, Barbara. Where’d you learn to do that?”

“Oh, you know. You pick up a few things here and there,” Barbara replied with a smile on her face. Her smile then dropped as her face flattened into a more serious expression and she began to type into one of her many keyboards. “But enough about me. We’ve got business to discuss.”

Taking that as their cue, the assembled heroes all took their seats among the table, turning their chairs as needed to look upon Oracle. She had already begun to manipulate the screen to her advantage, minimizing her face to a single corner of the screen as various CCT feeds and documents took up the rest.

“As I’m sure you’re more than aware of,” Oracle continued, “for the past few weeks Jump City has experienced a marked increase in the crime rate. Current estimates place it to a near 400% increase since Mumbo’s last incident. Given how the crime rate increased shortly afterwards, I’m willing to bet my life the two are interconnected.”

“Makes sense,” Jaune agreed, rubbing his hand across his chin while resting one leg on his knee. “Everything started falling apart shortly after that. Tell me, how abnormal is a crime rate this high in Jump City?”

“Very,” Nightwing answered darkly. “The last time Jump had a crime rate this high was in the immediate aftermath of the Darkseid War. Things like this don’t happen naturally here, which led me to believe that this crime rate increase was artificial.”

“Artificial?” Weiss asked. “You mean someone is manipulating all of this.”

Nightwing nodded as Oracle redirected a few feeds onto the screen. “Once I came to this conclusion, I brought Oracle in to assist in the investigation. Through her, we were able to narrow down a list of suspects who would be behind this latest excalation.”

As though prompted by his words, Oracle brought up a list of mugshots and dossiers, several of which RWBY and JNPR recognized instantly. As with Gotham, they saw Lex Luthor and Ra’s al Ghul among the suspects, but to their surprise large red ‘X’s were emblazoned on each. The other two, however, were not, but the two teams couldn’t recognize them. The first was a middle-aged man with a thin beard around his mouth, one eye covered in an eyepatch and wearing a set of orange and dark-blue armor. The second was simply a silhouette of a tall, imposing figure.

“Who are they?” Ruby asked, and Oracle moved to answer.

“Slade Wilson, otherwise known as Deathstroke the Terminator,” Oracle stated. “Former U.S. Special Forces and participant in a top-secret experimental super-soldier program. The process gave him enhanced strength, durability, reflexes, and more. In short, he became a meta-human in all but name. The problem is that, shortly after, he left the military and became a mercenary. Several of his contracts have resulted in him coming into conflict with the Titans repeatedly, and he’s attempted to destroy them several times in the past. His most successful attempt involved a young meta-human from Markovia named Tara Markov, codenamed Terra, infiltrating the Titans to destroy the group from within.”

Beast Boy growled and ground his teeth at the mention of Tara. RWBY and JNPR could easily tell that the girl was a sore subject to the boy, with Ren and Nora instantly recognizing it as going beyond the mere facets of even an intense friendship, but chose to say nothing and allowed the Titans to continue.

“Think this might be one of his attempts to kill us?” M’gann suggested, leaning forward in her chair. “Getting us exhausted trying to stem a massive crime wave would soften us up substantially, and if I’m reading this correctly, he was spotted shortly before the crime wave began.”

“M’gann, for once I _hope_ it’s Deathstroke,” Nightwing replied, “but unfortunately, he’s not the prime suspect this time. Oracle’s confirmed that he left before the crime wave hit, and hasn’t interacted with the city since.”

“Maybe he’s working from afar? It wouldn’t be the first time,” Cyborg added, obviously hoping beyond hope that the second man was not the root cause of recent events, but Oracle shook her head.

“The evidence suggests that, however faint, he’s currently on a long term contract with Lex Luthor on security detail. Guarding shipments and research facilities from authorities. Say what you will, but at least the man honors his contracts.”

“That’s…unfortunate.” Starfire frowned before moving her gaze to the other man. “Who’s the other?”

Nightwing looked back at Oracle and nodded. At once, the image of Deathstroke was crossed out and replaced with that of a now filled in silhouette. He was a tall, imposing man, with balding hair stylized to look like horns wearing priestly garbs. A wicked smile was adorned on his face, but before anyone could say anything, an intense force emerged out of Raven that made them recoil slightly.

“ _Brother Blood_ ,” Raven hissed with such venom that it surprised RWBY and JNPR.

“I’ve heard that name before,” Weiss interjected, “but you guys haven’t yet elaborated on him. Who, exactly, is he?”

“Brother Blood, real name Sebastian Blood VIII,” Oracle replied calmly. “He’s the leader of the Church of Blood—”

“It’s not a church!” Raven interjected angrily, causing everyone to turn to face her. “It’s a damned cult that worships my father!”

Pyrrha let Raven’s words sink in for a few minutes before feeling her eyes widen. “Wait, as in they worship Trigon?!” Unlike his apparent worshippers, the other Titans made them fully aware of who, exactly, he was. A dark god from another dimension, one who had enslaved countless worlds over the centuries, and was possibly the most powerful adversary the Titans had ever faced. According to Beast Boy, Raven had formed the Titans just to deal with him.

The fact that a cult that worshipped him, of all things, sent warning signs blaring through everyone. Nightwing saw the alarm grow on everyone’s faces, as well as the justified anger on Raven’s, before lowering his palm to get them to calm down. Once they did – waiting a not-quite considerable time for Raven to do so – he continued.

“Raven’s account is accurate. Brother Blood leads the Church of Blood, a Trigon-worshipping cult that believes mankind is inherently sinful. To outsiders, they espouse an embrace of this ‘truth’ and encourage people to submit to their vices in search of enlightenment; but in reality, they desire one and only one thing: to summon Trigon to our world so that he can bathe it in fire and blood.”

Oracle pressed a few more buttons on her end and opened a few more feeds, several of which began to play at once. “The evidence, admittedly, is scarce. They’ve made sure to destroy all evidence they can get their hands on. Cameras, security guards, intimidation, and more.” Oracle couldn’t help but let out a confident smirk. “But, obviously, not everything. They’ve left behind a few scattered clues around certain hotspots of activity.”

“Such as?” Blake asked, and Oracle pulled up an image of a burning apartment building. Jaune recognized it immediately as the one he and his team jumped into to try and save anyone still trapped inside. They only managed to save a single firefighter and a family, but from what he heard the father didn’t make it.

“A few hours before this building was set on fire, CCT cameras caught a few individuals wearing red robes with face masks walking by the premises repeatedly over the span of hours.” As Oracle narrated, the men and women in question were shown walking by. “Church doctrine demands that worshippers wear those garments everywhere, thus allowing them to be noticed by the cameras in the first place while concealing their identity.”

“Why hasn’t the police picked up on this?” Ren pointed out, and Oracle simply highlighted another short video of the same building.

“Because this guy,” she said, circling around a seemingly inconspicuous individual, “didn’t wear his when he went inside. Records show he’d been a tenant for the past two years, renting a room on the top floor. On the day of the arson, he got up in the morning, went to work, and came back later that night to eat dinner with the other residents. During that event, he disappeared from internal security cameras for ten minutes, came back to finish eating, then went up to his room. At midnight, whatever sabotage he did set the building on fire, killing himself and twenty other people who were unable to get out in time.”

Yang recoiled at this news. “He… killed himself? Why?”

“He’s a fanatic,” Raven curtly answered. “They all are. Any sacrifice is worth it to bring their lord to the real world, even immolation.

“That’s not all,” Nightwing continued. “Several individuals reported that their social media accounts, including Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, posted compromising and scandalous subject matter online without their consent, some of which wasn’t even real. The hacks were concentrated among those with violent or controlling spouses or loved ones, which often resulted in violence. Said individuals were also stalked by incognito Blood cultists beforehand, likely scoping out their targets.”

Ruby frowned at that, remembering one such incident. At least it answered how the compromising photos were posted online in the first place.

“Similar events have transpired across the city for the past few weeks, all of which Oracle has managed to trace back to a Blood cultist. But that isn’t the biggest piece of evidence.” Nightwing motioned for Oracle to continue, and the wheelchair-bound girl immediately pulled up a security camera placed across the street from Blood’s church in the heart of Jump City. To everyone’s surprise, they saw Brother Blood, umbrella in hand, escorting a man they recognized as a normal looking Mumbo Jumbo inside. The video fast-forwarded to just thirty minutes later, when a now terrified looking Mumbo sprinted out of the church, tripping on the wet concrete as Brother Blood watched on.

“God…dammit…” Cyborg cursed, clenching his fists. Beast Boy was similarly enraged and turned to face his leader.

“It’s obvious he’s behind it,” he emphatically stated. “We need to stop him, now.”

“I must agree with friend Beast Boy,” Starfire added, “Whatever the Brother of Blood’s plans may be, we cannot allow them to come to fruition.”

M’gann, Raven, and RWBY/JNPR all nodded in agreement, however Cyborg remained relatively composed. He kept his breathing steady, then looked over at everyone.

“As much as I want nothing more than to simply barge in to kick ass and take names, it wouldn’t work. Not with what we have now,” he pointed out.

“What are you talking about? Of course it would?” Ruby pointed out, only for Weiss to see where Cyborg was getting at.

“… No, it wouldn’t,” Weiss sighed and frowned. “It’s not conclusive. The hacks can’t be directly traced back to the Church of Blood, their robes would prevent the police from identifying their faces or appearance. It’s a miracle even Oracle managed to pick up on their subtle movements. Mumbo’s appearance in Blood’s church before his incident can be argued by him as simply trying to provide comfort to a clearly troubled man. The arson can be explained as the action of a single man, not done because a cult leader told him to. Any competent lawyer, which they most assuredly could afford, would be able to argue against such circumstantial evidence in a court of law.”

“You seemed to catch onto that real quick,” Beast Boy pointed out, and Weiss nodded.

“My father did it all the time.”

Blake nodded at Weiss’ statement before leaning forward across the desk. “So, we need more concrete evidence, then. Something he can’t lawyer his way out of. Any leads there?”

“Yes, actually,” Oracle replied. “For the past few weeks, the Church of Blood has been ordering substantial amounts of supplies from overseas. They told authorities that they were simply food and other such materials meant for their congregation, but whomever they bought their food from wouldn’t send Deathstroke to secure it.”

Illustrating her words, Oracle pulled up a CCT feed of the docks, showing a large cargo ship entering port. Standing inside the ship’s bridge, barely noticeable, was the armored visage of Deathstroke watching over the ship. Once again, the Remnantians were impressed by Oracle’s ability to even pick up on it. Had she not done so, it most assuredly would have slipped them by completely.

“They’ve had a few more shipments since then, all on regular intervals. If the pattern holds, another one should be coming in tonight,” Nightwing added. “I already have someone on site at the docks to watch over everything, and we’ll be meeting up with her soon to stake the place out.”

RWBY and JNPR nodded, understanding the plan almost immediately. They simply go in, wait them out, and intercept the shipment as it enters port, and catch Brother Blood red handed.

“Sounds good to me,” Yang stated, cracking her neck from side to side as she did. “When do we head out?”

Instead of an immediate answer, Nightwing looked her in the eye and shook his head. For a moment Yang wondered why, only to catch M’gann’s eye and finally remember.

“Oh, is that today?” Yang asked in complete surprise. “I completely forgot.”

“I remembered,” Ruby cut in with a haughty look, only for her sister and team to look at her with an incredulous look.

“You remembered our weekly session with M’gann but not your own birthday?” Weiss asked, and Ruby shrugged.

“What? We’ve been doing them since we’ve arrived on Earth. It’s regular by this point.”

Weiss couldn’t help but slap her head at her leaders’ statement before looking at the rest of the Titans. “Ruby’s skewed priorities aside—”

“HEY!”

“- if you need any assistance from us, we can always call it off and host it another day.”

“We’ll be fine,” Nightwing replied with an understanding smile. “Consider it a day off.”

“…okay, if you’re sure,” Jaune stated, seemingly unsure of Nightwing’s decision yet at the same time grateful. A day off from everything sounded amazing in his mind, and he could tell the rest of his friends thought the same.

Nightwing nodded then folded his arms behind his back. “We’ll remain in radio contact with both you all and Oracle during the operation, and we’ll let you and M’gann know if we need assistance.”

Yang flashed a thumbs up as the rest of her team and JNPR nodded in understanding. Nightwing nodded back then looked at the rest of the Titans, sans M’gann.

“If that’s everything, it’s about time we head on over. Don’t want to keep her waiting.”

Following Nightwing’s order, the on-duty Titans rose out of their seats and exited the conference room, undoubtedly heading towards the garage as Beast Boy complained about how they got days off but he didn’t. Ruby couldn’t help but wonder what vehicle they would take before deciding on the T-Sub, figuring that was the best option for staking out a dockyard. She and the others then turned to face M’gann, who was smiling at them comfortingly.

“Well, then. Shall we begin?”

* * *

 

From a submerged entry port on the base of Titans Island, a large orange submarine swam out silently over the undersea reef. Watching through their individual bulbous canopies, the Titans carefully monitored their approach to the Jump City dockyard, checking their instruments as Cyborg drove them in.

“ _I’m just saying, man. It’s unfair,_ ” Beast Boy whined through the intercom.

“ _Garfield, get over it,_ ” Raven shot back. “ _You’ll have your day off tomorrow when we celebrate Ruby’s birthday._ ”

“ _I know, but still…_ ”

Despite himself, Nightwing couldn’t help but smile at the two friends’ bickering. It was a welcome change of pace from Raven’s recent bout of extreme moodiness. A return to normalcy. The warm smile on Starfire’s face told him that she felt the same way.

Nightwing smiled back before flattening his face, refocusing himself on the task at hand. His mind ran through the possibilities of how events might transpire, whether they would go perfectly according to plan or if they would fall flat on their face. He dreaded to think of worst-case scenarios but think of them he did all the same. If there was one thing Batman drilled into him, it was to plan for every scenario.

That wasn’t to say he’d go as far as his father did at times, not that he couldn’t understand why Batman did what he did. After all, Titans Tower was equipped for one such possibility at Raven’s request.

“ _We’re approaching the docks now,_ ” Cyborg declared, snapping Nightwing from his ruminations. Looking up, he saw that Cyborg’s statement was accurate. The T-Sub was located directly underneath the central dock, resting on the ocean floor. Taking his cue, Nightwing activated a few buttons and watched as the submarine’s active camouflage systems activated, causing the sub’s photoreactive panels to shift colors and textures to blend into the ocean floor. Once it was completed, Nightwing placed a rebreather on his face and directed a thumbs up to the rest of his team. The others signaled back after preparing themselves, and a moment later their cockpits slowly became filled with seawater.

Once they were all filled with water, the hatches opened and allowed the superheroes to gracefully swim out towards the far side of the docks. Beast Boy, unsurprisingly, had the least amount of difficulty as he simply turned himself into a fish and swam across the seabed, Starfire and Raven swimming after him. Starfire had a rebreather of her own over her face while Raven was content with generating a magical sphere around her head. Cyborg, too heavy to swim, merely walked along the ocean floor, Nightwing swimming over him with a pair of flippers deploying from his suit’s boots.

The team soon reconvened underneath their entry point. Pointing his finger up repeatedly, Nightwing signaled the Titans to swim up towards the surface. They did so silently and without question. Moments later, their heads broke through the waters’ surface where they then proceeded to scan for any watchful eyes. At the same time, Cyborg hacked into nearby security cameras to remove them from view.

“Coast’s clear,” Nightwing whispered as he motioned for everyone to get out of the water, eyeing a lone ladder on the far side of the docks. Swimming towards it, they each got of the water before quickly finding cover among the many assorted shipping containers. They soon found a perfect vantage point on top of a mountain of containers, one that would ensure they’d be able to keep eyes on everything while at the same time preventing anyone from seeing them. Raven, Starfire, and Beast Boy flew towards it, Starfire holding Cyborg in her arms at the same time, while Nightwing merely grappled to the very top.

As the heroes began to assemble and place surveillance gear around the site, Nightwing began going over the plan one more time. “The ship should be coming in around midnight, well after the dock workers have left for home. The ones who are left are those likely on Blood’s or Luthor’s payroll. Our job until then is to figure out who is who.

“Once the ship does arrive, we are not going to attack right away. Our purpose here is to gather evidence, not make arrests. I’d prefer if no one even knew we were here. At the same time, Beast Boy will infiltrate the ship and disable the engines from underwater, preventing any possible escapes. If things get hairy, we go loud. Concentrate on bagging everyone and destroying any defenses while keeping the evidence intact. That’s our priority.”

“Got it.”

“Understood.”

“Question,” Starfire stated while politely raising her hand. “Is there anything in particular you think we should go after?”

Nightwing shook his head. “A server, shipping manifest, things of that nature. Evidence that we can tie directly to Brother Blood. Any specifics, however, I don’t have an answer for.”

“The manifest’s a lost cause,” a woman said, catching the Titans off guard. “It’ll be forged and altered. What you guys will want won’t be on it.”

Nightwing and the rest of the Titans looked up to see a young girl in her late teens staring down at them with her cat-like pink eyes. Her pink hair was stylized to look like horns with black bands holding the ends together, with a purple and black outfit completing her witch-like appearance. Raven couldn’t help but frown at the girl’s presence while the others looked at her apprehensively, except for Starfire who was jubilant.

“Jinx! So happy you could join us!” Starfire exclaimed with a smile. Jinx smiled back before leaping down to join the rest of the Titans with a twirling flip, landing on her feet like a graceful cat. Standing upright, she walked over to join Nightwing at the edge of their platform to overlook the dockyard.

“Jinx,” he greeted. “Thanks for the assist. Sorry for the short notice.”

Jinx chuckled. “You’re not sorry.” Nightwing didn’t answer, causing Jinx to take it as an affirmation before continuing. “Seriously though. There I was, just chilling in Central City, living with my boyfriend, when I get a random call in the middle of the night asking me to come back down here and help you guys take down Brother Blood. I could have gone without seeing Ms. Dark and Broody over there for a few more months.”

Raven growled in annoyance, but Jinx waved it off. “Raven, seriously. Take a chill pill. You lose control right now, at me just ribbing you, and this entire operation is a bust.”

Rather than respond, Raven just huffed and walked to the far side of the platform. The Titans watched her go, and Beast Boy awkwardly shrugged before walking over to join her. Cyborg and Starfire, meanwhile, joined Nightwing and Jinx on the overlook. Seeing them, Jinx let out a smile, although towards Cyborg the smile was a bit more genuine.

“Why is she here?” Raven grumbled as Beast Boy patted her back.

“You remember what Nightwing said,” Beast Boy replied. “She used to work under Brother Blood a few years back when she was still part of the HIVE Five. She knows more about his operation than any of us.”

“A simple phone call would have worked…”

Ignoring Raven’s snide comments, Jinx continued to talk. “In all seriousness, it’s good to see you goody-two-shoes again. Still all in on the hero thing, right?”

“Yep, and that isn’t likely to change anytime soon,” Cyborg replied before letting out a smirk. “What about you? How’s life in Central City?”

“Dull.” Jinx sighed and leaned against the interior wall. “I’m still under probation, – speaking of which, me helping you technically counts as a violation of that, so if I’m going down, you’re going down with me – so I can’t really do anything. Can’t even help Kid Flash with _his_ hero work.”

“How is Wally, by the way?” Starfire asked. Jinx smiled warmly in response, and Starfire responded in kind. “Oh, that’s so sweet!”

“He’s a sweetheart really,” Jinx clarified. From the back of the platform, Beast Boy gagged while Raven rolled her eyes. Seeing Jinx acting like a lovestruck schoolgirl with Kid Flash was not something she wanted to see of the former supervillain. Continuing, Jinx said, “He wanted to come and help, but I told him to stay back home.

“After all,” Jinx’ expression flattened, remembering the last time she and the rest of her former team interacted with the zealot, how he took control of their minds and turned them into meat puppets, and growled, “he’s mine…”

“You may need to get in line for that,” Nightwing replied, tilting his head towards Raven.

Jinx turned back to face Raven for a brief moment. “I’m willing to share if you are?”

Raven didn’t respond for a moment before nodding. Jinx nodded back before looking back down. “Anyway, back to why we’re here. I’ve been staking out this place for almost a day, figuring out who’s on Luthor’s payroll.”

“You can tell who they are?” Beast Boy asked, joining the discussion, and Jinx nodded.

“Mmhmm.” Jinx then proceeded to point towards several scattered individuals. To the untrained eye, they appeared as normal as any other dock worker. “I knew several of them back in my HIVE days. Gizmo would smuggle parts in through them, and I suspected they’d still be in the game even now. Not only was I right, they expanded to a few more people.”

“You didn’t let the police know about smugglers?” Raven countered, but Jinx stared back.

“I did, and they’re still here. In case you’ve forgotten, Luthor’s got his little paws everywhere, and he’s not about to let his workers go to jail for smuggling. That could tie things back to him, and he can’t have that. Although, if you fail too much…” Jinx left her sentence hanging, but the Titans saw no need for her to finish the thought. They understood what she meant.

“Did anything interesting happen last night?” Nightwing asked, and Jinx nodded.

“A smaller shipment came in. It was…weird, though.” Jinx frowned, causing the others to look at her.

“What do you mean?” Starfire asked.

“I mean, that ‘Oracle’ lady led me to believe that Blood was bringing in weapons. Guns, rocket launchers, and so on. I saw that, but…” Jinx paused, thinking over her words. “There was…something else. A completely sealed cage; several of them, in fact. I couldn’t see inside, but the workers were scared shitless of whatever they held. They were so focused on keeping their guns trained on it that they didn’t notice me swiping whatever I could off of them.”

Nightwing and the rest of the Titans looked at each other in worry before looking back at Jinx. “Did you find out anything else about these cages? Names, what was in them, anything at all?” Raven asked, and Jinx shook her head.

“Not much, but apparently they’ve been bringing small amounts over for the past few weeks. Only a few per shipment of varying sizes.” Jinx looked back down at the dockyard before looking back up. “I think he’s planning to undergo some sort of ritual with them, but exactly what I have no idea.”

“Did you get a scan on them?” Raven followed up, subtly doing the same with her own magic.

“I control probability, not magic.” Jinx frowned, annoyed at the admittedly common misconception, before sighing. “But, whatever was inside that cage… It felt like pure evil.”

* * *

 

Ruby laid back against one of the couches, her eyes tightly shut as she steadily breathed in and out. She appeared to be asleep, as did the rest of her friends, but she was anything but. Instead, deep in the reaches of her mind, Ruby sat inside her old dorm room in Beacon Academy. Everything looked and felt exactly as she remembered it, from the precarious bunk beds held together through rope and carefully placed books to the posters on the wall. She even saw Zwei’s dog bowl tucked away in one of the corners, and Ruby couldn’t help but let out a warm smile at the memory.

“It looks lovely,” M’gann said as she sat across from Ruby on Yang’s bed. Ruby nodded as she regarded the White Martian. Only the two of them were in the room, yet at the same time Ruby knew that this wasn’t the case. After all, in the real world, they were in the same room.

One of the many benefits of their therapist being a psychic.

“It was,” Ruby agreed, walking around the room and feeling her hand rub against one of the desks. “A lot of happy memories happened here.” The Red Reaper then paused and frowned. “We were supposed to be here for three more years. We barely got through one before…”

Ruby’s words trailed off, but M’gann understood exactly where she was going. “It’s not your fault, Ruby. You or your friends, for that matter. The fault lies squarely on Brainiac’s shoulders.”

Ruby sighed and sat down on a chair. “You see, I know that. I didn’t choose to blow up the world, he did. But, at the same, I can’t help but feel as though I could have stopped him. It’s dumb and wrong, but…”

“It’s not dumb,” M’gann interrupted. “What you’re feeling is perfectly natural. We all go through this. ‘What if I did this’ or ‘What if I did that’. Would things have turned out differently? After the Imperium Invasion, I myself wondered if, had I managed to become enlightened earlier, could I have turned the rest of my original species down a lighter path. Prevent them from trying to conquer Earth.”

M’gann breathed in deeply through her nose and looked at Ruby. “But you can’t account for everyone. People make their own choices, whether they be wonderous or terrible, and you can’t control everything. At the end of the day, Brainiac was too powerful for any of you. Planets far more advanced than Earth or Remnant have tried and failed to stop him.

“Yet, at the same time, the fact that you made it as far as you did is commendable,” M’gann emphasized. “You and your friends had been fighting non-stop for two days, fought Brainiac anyway, and managed to live to tell the tale. Through the eight of you, Remnant still lives. Don’t take that away from yourself.”

“…yeah, I suppose you’re right.” Part of Ruby didn’t fully believe that, but at the same time she appreciated the sentiment. Sighing again, she laid out across her bed and stared up at the makeshift canopy. “I had another nightmare last night. Same one as always. Brainiac comes to Earth, kills all my friends, and captures me. It always ends when he reaches for my eyes.”

M’gann nodded, recognizing Ruby’s frequent nightmare. She had been experiencing them intermittently ever since she arrived, but instead of focusing on how that wasn’t going to happen to her, M’gann tried a different approach. “Why always the eyes?”

“It’s what he was interested in when he captured me, why he captured me. But, even after all the tests with the League, they still don’t know why he was interested in them. They’re just…normal eyes.”

“That’s not true,” M’gann stated, causing Ruby to look towards her. “They’re your eyes. That makes them unique.”

Ruby smiled, appreciating the pep talk from M’gann, and chuckled. “Thanks. For…everything really. To all of you. You and the League, you guys took us in when you didn’t have to. All of us really appreciate it.”

“Ruby, you’re my friend. All of you are my friends. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for any of you.”

M’gann smiled warmly at Ruby, and the young girl smiled back. M’gann then felt her concentration relax, and the White Martian was brought back to the real world. She looked around the room to see all of teams RWBY and JNPR asleep on their couches and chairs. M’gann’s mind was connected to all of them, independently yet synchronized. Her ability to do so was honed through years of practice, allowing her to concentrate on everyone’s individual needs at one time.

Each of them had their own similar and unique psychological needs post-Brainiac, which M’gann had been carefully documenting and advising the team on ever since they had arrived. Nightmares, tremors, tell-tale signs of PTSD. Back when the teams were in the League’s custody, Diana and others had overseen their therapy, but M’gann had taken over it once they had arrived at Titans Tower. She was happy that significant progress had been made, yet at the same time knew it would take years for them to fully move on.

That was by far their biggest hang up, M’gann noted as she wrote down notes on a legal pad. As she expected, each of them (not necessarily to the same degree) blamed themselves for what happened to Remnant. That if they were stronger, things might have gone differently. That they could have defeated Brainiac and possibly put the cities back. Yet, at the same time, they also knew that thought was fallacious and harmful. The fact that they recognized that was a massive relief to the Martian girl.

As she wrote down more information, psychic conversations with the other Huntsmen and Huntresses trickled in. All played out separately from one other yet at the same time took place in their old dorm rooms at Beacon Academy. Jaune was still unsure about how he felt towards Pyrrha, knowing it was intense but not whether it was merely an intense friendship or a romantic one. More than anything else, the boy was terrified of losing his best friend over them. Pyrrha felt the same way towards her partner, and M’gann advised both to take it naturally, perhaps even try one date when both were ready. Apparently, Ren and Nora, who had gotten a great deal more codependent on each other lately, were even willing to go on a double-date with their teammates to help them through any awkwardness.

Blake was currently talking about the guilt she feels about leaving her parents behind in Menagerie. She had left them on poor terms and, now that Remnant was gone, worried that she’d never see them again. Yang, on the other hand, talked about how she feared losing everyone. It took a while for it to come out, but apparently Yang’s mother had abandoned her and her father when she was just a baby. The irony of the two partners’ contrasting issues was not lost on the telepath. M’gann emphasized to Blake that her parents, no matter what, loved her despite how she may have left, and she comforted Yang that she didn’t have to fear her friends and loved ones leaving her. She was most confident of that, given how their bonds as friends had strengthened ever since their ordeal.

Weiss, meanwhile, talked about how  much she missed her sister. She knew Winter lived through the battle, but she still worried about what happened after. Towards the rest of her family, Weiss unfortunately held less…fond sentiments. She still missed them, but no where near the level of her sister. M’gann suspected that there was quite a bit more to unpack there than Weiss let on, perhaps enough to warrant more dedicated sessions to later. Other than that, she had managed to compose herself well, although she was pouring herself into learning everything she could about the world as a coping mechanism. Weiss had defaulted towards a studious mindset, which M’gann supported yet at the same time urged to keep in moderation.

All of them felt a little bit like freeloaders, however, given how none of them had been able to pay for the things they wanted. M’gann was more amused by that then anything else yet jotted it down all the same. Overall, she was happy with how the two teams were progressing, to the point where she was recommending that they scale back their sessions from once a week to once a month. Sighing to herself, M’gann leaned back against her chair and pulled out her communicator, texting her brother to ask for a status update.

‘ _Anything?_ ’ she texted, sending the message soon after. A moment later, her T-Phone buzzed as Garfield responded.

‘ _Nothing yet. Raven’s moody, though. Still doesn’t fully trust Jinx. Can’t say I blame her, but I’ve been trying to calm her down_ ,’ he responded. M’gann nodded at this information, expecting things would turn out like this.

‘ _Give her time. I’m sure she’ll come around soon._ ’

‘ _I know. Gotta get back. Luv ya, sis._ ’

“ _Love you, too, Gar._ ’

* * *

 

Several, agonizing hours of stalking later, with the moon high above the dockyard, a lone ship finally came into view. It was small, carrying a single cargo container on top of its hull. Nightwing saw the name ‘White Portuguese’ emblazoned on the side, yet according to Cyborg’s databanks, the ship sunk years ago during a voyage in the Bermuda Triangle. Obviously that wasn’t the case, but the name did little to tell the Titans who owned the vessel beyond ‘baseless’ suspicion.

“ _That’s it. That’s the ship_ ,” Jinx confirmed over the radio in a low whisper. “ _They only bring in one or two cargo containers, unload them into trucks, then leave. In and out in thirty minutes, with no one else the wiser.”_

“ _Doesn’t hurt that they’ve disabled the security cameras. Got them playing an endless loop,_ ” Cyborg added. “ _They’re working_ now _, of course. Camera feeds looking over the entire dockyard, going straight to Titans Tower._ ”

“ _Nice job, Cy,_ ” Beast Boy congratulated his friend. Nightwing could feel the smirk on Victor’s face, but he had to keep them focused.

“Beast Boy, get in position. I don’t want that ship to leave if we can help it,” he ordered. Beast Boy quickly acknowledged it and, disguising himself as a tiny bird, flew out over the water then turned into a fish, disappearing underneath the waves. None of the criminals currently unloading the crate from the vessel seemed to notice him, and Nightwing nodded to himself. Things were going to plan, but he refused to let himself rest on his laurels here of all places.

After all, it was when things appeared to be going to plan that they tended to go terribly wrong.

High above him, hiding behind the largest of the dock cranes, Starfire watched over the assembled criminals as they worked, taking note of their numbers and weapons. There was about ten dockworkers assisting dozens of armed men, taking inventory and making sure that nothing was out of place. Her eyes kept track of the few that held rocket launchers, specifically on the munitions that she couldn’t recognize.

“Cyborg, what are those?” Starfire asked. A few moments passed before he replied.

“ _Can’t tell. Experimental weapons, obviously, but there’s no record of them in anything I can access._ ”

“ _What are they firing?_ ” Nightwing asked.

“ _That’s just it. I have no idea. Whoever made those things didn’t want them analyzed. Cyber security’s top notch, and it’ll take me a while to break through._ ”

“ _Do it. I don’t want any surprises._ ”

Starfire could feel the apprehension in her boyfriend’s voice, his concern for his teammates’ lives and safety overriding everything else. It was one of the many things she loved about him. Despite being the weakest among them, he still fought twice as hard, if not harder, than anyone else she knew. She wasn’t surprised he’d take the threat of unknown munitions seriously.

That wasn’t to say she wasn’t. Should a fight break out, those weapon would be the first to go.

“Move it, move it!” one of the armed gunmen yelled out as crates of weapons and equipment were unloaded out from the crate. “Make sure those aren’t damaged! Any that are come out your paycheck!”

“Don’t rush me, you brute!” a docker countered as she inspected a rifle. “We’re getting paid good money for this shit, and the last thing I want to find out is that these weapons are defective.”

“These are top of the line LexCorp weapons. Their quality is assured.”

“Uh-huh.” The woman sounded skeptical, while the man simply appeared annoyed. “Where’d you get them, anyway?”

“Things disappear,” he darkly answered, gesturing to the rifle in his hands. “Like you if you don’t shut up and get those things loaded.”

Rather than appear intimidated, the woman merely rolled her eyes and shut the weapons case and directed the arriving truck to begin loading them. It was unmarked, with no logos or even license plates to distinguish it, which the Titans assumed to be a precautionary measure against watchful eyes. Nightwing flipped a tracking device in his hand, eyeing the trajectory he’d have to throw it to reach the truck, when a loud commotion redirected his attention back to the White Portuguese.

“It’s coming out!” another gunman shouted. At once, every available weapon was trained onto the cargo container as a pair of dock workers nervously went inside with a forklift. A few moments later, a large, windowless metal crate was lifted out of its previous confines, and whatever creature it held banged repeatedly against the metal.

“ _What in the world..?_ ” Cyborg asked in both curiosity and horror as he scanned the box with every frequency. “ _I’m not detecting anything in there. No thermal signatures, no heartbeats, nothing…_ ”

“ _Well, obviously something’s alive in there,_ ” Starfire noted.

“ _I wouldn’t call it ‘alive’,”_ Raven clarified, trepidation in her voice. “ _I wouldn’t even call it dead. More like…whatever the opposite of life is._ ”

“ _See, I told you. Whatever’s in that thing is pure evil,_ ” Jinx added, but Raven shook her head.

“ _Evil implies choice, knowledge, higher brain functions. Whatever this thing is, there’s no real mind I can detect. Just an engine of pure destruction._ ”

Everyone paused at Raven’s remarks, letting them swirl in their minds.

“ _Well…that’s disturbing,_ ” Starfire finally said.

_“I swear to God, if there’s a mini-Doomsday in there…_ ” Cyborg half-joked, trying to somewhat lighten the tension.

“ _Don’t joke about that, man,_ ” Jinx replied, and Cyborg shamefully sighed. Nightwing, meanwhile, kept his eyes centered on the crate, only for one particularly hard movement to knock it off the forklift and onto the dockyard.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” a gunman shouted as he and others raised their weapons towards the object as it continued to rattle and shake, the creature inside roaring unnaturally. The forklift operators were eyeing it fearfully, even as the head gunman directed them to pick it up.

“Hurry up! Get that thing loaded, now!”

“But-!”

“Does it look like I care? Hurry up!”

With a sigh, the drivers moved the forklift over to pick the object up, only to suddenly back off once the crate moved again. With an angry grunt, the gunman moved over to threaten the worker, only to stop once a loud clang erupted from the White Portuguese.

“Will you snot-for-brains hurry up!” a shrill voice shouted as its owner stepped out onto the ship’s deck. It was a young child, no older than fifteen, yet completely bald. He was wearing a green jumpsuit with a grey backpack, and he regarded everyone with annoyance and disdain.

“Oh, shit…” Nightwing cursed, immediately recognizing the boy as Gizmo. The rest of the Titans did as well, and weren’t happy about it.

“ _What the hell?!”_

“ _When did Gizmo get here?!”_

“Jinx, explain now!” Nightwing demanded, and an equally panicked Jinx began to stutter out an explanation.

“ _I-I don’t know! He wasn’t here yesterday!_ ”

“ _She’s lying!_ ” Raven countered, absolutely furious. “ _This is a trap, I knew it!”_

“ _No, it’s not! You think I_ want _to work with that idiot?!_ ”

As the two continued to argue, Starfire interrupted. “ _Um, it’s not just Gizmo._ ”

True to Starfire’s word, from behind Gizmo emerged four other criminals they instantly recognized. Mammoth, Billy Numerous, Kyd Wykkyd, and See-More.

“You chumps need some help with that?” Mammoth asked with a smug smirk as he walked over to the fallen crate. The forklift operators didn’t answer, merely allowing the hulking man to easily lift the box over his shoulder. The creature inside thrashed about and roared, and for a moment a look of nervousness creeped into Mammoth’s face, but he just as quickly disregarded it and placed it inside the truck.

“There, problem solved.”

“ _Goddammit, it’s the whole HIVE Five…_ ” Cyborg cursed. From behind his mic, they could hear the faint sound of Cyborg priming his weapons. Nightwing both understood and agreed with the action, his own hand hovering over one of his utility belt’s many pouches.

Things had just gotten a lot more complicated.

“ _Nightwing, what do we do?_ ” Starfire asked. Nightwing ran through the options in his head. The odds of a fight breaking out had increased exponentially, almost to the point of being assured, and with that in mind he changed the plan accordingly.

“Change of plans,” he replied, pulling out a wing-ding as he did. “We attack when I say so. Beast Boy, disable the engines. Raven, Jinx, disable the truck but don’t destroy the smuggled goods. Cyborg, Starfire, get yourselves in position.”

“ _On it._ ”

“ _Understood._ ”

“ _You got it, boss man._ ”

Beast Boy squeaked in response, likely having turned himself into a mouse to infiltrate the White Portuguese, but Raven did not. Instead, Nightwing looked around, trying to find her, and to his horror he saw a dark miasma form over where the half-demon was hiding herself.

“Raven, calm down!” Nightwing ordered.

“ _I’m…trying…_ ” Raven grunted out. “ _That creature, it’s…messing with me…_ ”

True to Raven’s word, the creature inside the sealed cage thrashed about even more as it appeared to sense Raven’s distress.

“ _Get it together, girl!_ ” Jinx cautioned, but the creature thrashed even more. The HIVE Five and the smugglers had begun to pick up on the creature’s increased agitation, many of whom began to raise their weapons.

“Uh, guys?” See-More nervously asked, his lone eye widening as he backed up a step. Billy Numerous did the same while Mammoth clenched his fists in preparation of a fight. Kid Wykkyd, however, remained impassive as his eyes began to search the area. The cage thrashed about even more, throwing itself from side to side, causing the remaining gunmen to point their weapons towards it apprehensively. Several clicks were heard as safeties were turned off, yet despite the increased tension Gizmo merely grunted in annoyance.

“Bunch of pie-for-brains,” Gizmo cursed while pulling out a data pad and pressing it. Electricity then burst from within the cage, electrifying whatever was held within. A bloodcurdling roar was heard from behind the sparks, and the cage thrashed about even harder. Gizmo frowned and increased the voltage in response, and after a few moments the thrashing finally died down. The child prodigy waited a few more seconds before finally smiling and turning the cage off, snapping his fingers as he pocketed the device.

“There we go,” he said triumphantly, but rather than feel impressed one of the smugglers marched up to him angrily.

“You idiot! You could have killed it! Do you know how much that thing is worth?” he shouted, but Gizmo scowled instead of backing down.

“Well then, how about you go check? I don’t care if it lives or dies, I already got paid. The way I see it, keeping it alive is your problem,” Gizmo countered and mockingly pointed towards the truck. The smuggler grunted angrily before directing one of his men to check the container. A woman nervously gulped and stepped towards the cage, her body glistening from a nervous sweat. She slowly opened a small sliding window and peeked inside, shining a flashlight as she did.

“I don’t—” she started, only to jump back as the creature slammed against the wall between them. She screamed in fright as the cage rattled more and more, outward-forming dents appearing as the creature attempted to break free. One dent was slashed open with a large white claw, and a single glowing red eye peered out at the terrified smuggler before Kid Wykkyd finally teleported her to safety.

“OPEN FIRE!” the gunmen shouted before a barrage of bullets rang out towards the cage. Sparks and ricochets erupted from the cage as the creature thrashed in pain, only to finally stop and slump over. The barrage didn’t stop for almost a minute afterwards, only ceasing when a small cloud of black smoke billowed out of the many holes in the cage.

“Cease fire, cease fire!” A few more shots rang out after the order was given, and the Titans watched silently as the criminals reloaded their weapons and hoisted the cage out. They looked inside the cage, hoping to catch of a glimpse of the creature’s corpse, only to see nothing.

“Wh-what the hell was that?!” the recovering smuggler asked as her coworkers tended to her.

“A waste of assets,” the lead gunmen responded before turning to Gizmo and the rest of the HIVE Five. “I thought you were supposed to keep that thing contained?”

“Nah, see, our job is to keep the shipment safe from any would-be do-gooders,” Billy Numerous clarified under a southern drawl. “Cops and Titans and such. Keepin’ that thing alive was the last thing on our minds, givin’ how dangerous it was.”

“Good riddance,” See-More muttered under his breath. “That thing gave me the creeps.”

Kid Wykkyd remained silent and impassive alongside an annoyed Mammoth as Gizmo and the other criminals began to argue. The Titans, meanwhile, continued to record everything.

“ _What the hell was that?”_ Jinx asked. None of the Titans nor the security cameras had managed to peek inside the cage as it was being lit up, only catching the white claws and red eye, and they were utterly lost as to what the creature was. Raven, meanwhile, seemed to calm down as the miasma around her faded.

“ _Raven, you okay?_ ” Cyborg asked, and after a moment the half-demon responded.

“ _I’m fine…whatever that thing was, its effect on my mind is gone now…_ ” Raven admitted, and Nightwing sighed in relief. He then turned his attention back towards the criminals. They were beginning to pack up and leave, and Nightwing began to issue the order to attack, only to notice with alarm that Kid Wykkyd had suddenly disappeared. The HIVE Five and the other smugglers had just noticed this as well, wondering where the black-cloaked teleporter had gone.

“ _Uh… Where’s Kid?_ Starfire asked. Nightwing moved to answer, only for his instincts to kick in. He quickly turned around just as a dark portal opened behind him, from which the supervillain attempted to deliver a kick to Nightwing’s head. Nightwing easily caught it and flung Kid Wykkyd against the wall of a shipping container he was hiding behind. He prepared to punch Wykkyd in the face, only for the supervillain to smirk and teleport away. Nightwing managed to stop his fist from striking the aluminum container and immediately brought his fingers to his ear.

“TITANS, GO!”

Just as he gave the command, shouts of the criminals and supervillains rang out. Shots began to fire alongside rockets against spells and starbolts, and a screech of metal announced Beast Boy as he turned into a blue whale from the inside of the White Portuguese.

“Goddammit, my ship!” a voice rang out as Starfire dodged rocket fire. From above, she could see the dock workers scurrying for cover as the armed and dangerous criminals fired at her and her teammates. The ones with rocket launchers continued to fire their weapons towards her while others fired at her friends. As she continued to roll between rockets, she saw Cyborg burst from his hiding place and fire his sonic cannon at a group of mercenaries, their bullets pinging harmlessly off his chassis while the sound waves sent them flying back. One merc grabbed hold of a fifty-caliber machine gun and began firing it, forcing Cyborg into cover, but Raven then erected a shield to block the heavy rounds. Behind her, much to Raven’s obvious displeasure, Jinx began throwing hexes towards their opponents. She struck a pile of wooden crates with one, causing them to topple over and crush a group of mercenaries into unconsciousness.

Starfire, rolling out of the way of another barrage of rockets, threw some starbolts and struck the shooters center mass, knocking the weapons out of their hands and the breath out of their lungs. The heavy machine gun turned to fire at her, only for a wing-ding to suddenly strike against the man’s head, distracting him long enough for a snake-formed Beast Boy to coil himself around the man and constrict. The gunner screamed in agony before losing consciousness, then the green-skinned boy turned himself into a gorilla to pound on a few more criminals nearby.

“Bunch of amateurs!” Gizmo snarled as four spider-like legs ejected from his backpack. The Titans were easily beating the hired goons in no short order, and if he didn’t act soon then everything would be a bust. His gaze turned towards the truck, where he saw that despite a person trying to start the vehicle, it wouldn’t start. Snarling, Gizmo then forcibly lifted one of the fallen mercenaries to his feet and glared into his eyes.

“Get you and your men out of here!” he ordered before throwing him back.

“Wh-what are you going to do?!” the mercenary asked while getting himself to his feet.

“Our jobs.” Gizmo looked at Mammoth, and the brute looked back and nodded while cracking his knuckles. Then, Mammoth picked up a nearby shipping container and hurled it towards Raven’s shield, shattering it and forcing Raven and Jinx into cover. Cyborg dove out of cover as well once Mammoth proceeded to charge through the concrete pillar he was hiding behind. The metallic young adult retaliated by morphing his fist into a giant club and socking Mammoth across the jaw, spinning him around.

“Uggh!” Mammoth grunted as he steadied himself. Then, with a confident smirk on his face, he cracked his neck and began to circle Cyborg. “For a puny man, you hit pretty hard.”

“Oh, I can do a lot more than hit hard, Mammoth,” Cyborg taunted while flexing his arm back. With a wordless roar, both of the fighters charged at each other and engaged into a brutal brawl, throwing punches, kicks, and elbows wherever they could.

Nightwing, meanwhile, was engaged in a fierce melee with Billy Numerous and his many clones. The Texan supervillain assaulted the Gothamite from all sides. With each clone being his own individual, it made combating all at once a challenge.

“Gotta admit,” Billy said as he dodged one of Nightwing’s punches and retaliated with a kick, which the superhero proceeded to catch and pivot, hurling the man into one of his many clones. “I always respected the fact that you kept up so much without powers. Props.”

“Does it look like I want your approval?” Nightwing asked as he backflipped away from a pair of Billy clones attacking him from the side, causing them to hit each other instead. He then spring-boarded off his hands and flipped again, this time throwing a trio of wing-dings into different clones, where they then exploded into a concussive blast and knocked the clones back.

“Nah, just professional courtesy, really.” Billy, seeing how two of his clones were out of commission, merely generated two more in their place and was none the worse for wear. He continued to assault the Titan leader from all sides, continuing to produce more and more clones at the same time.

“Still,” Billy continued, “you’re interfering with my work. Sorry, but a man’s gotta get paid.”

“You know there are other ways to use your powers legitimately, right?” Nightwing rhetorically asked as he deflected several clones’ blows at once, retaliating with his own in kind.

“Yeah, I know, but where’s the fun in that?” Billy smirked at his own remark, while Nightwing sighed regretfully. Any further thoughts were interrupted by repeated assaults by numerous clones, forcing Nightwing to throw down a gas pellet and zip away in the ensuing confusion.

See-More, focusing his attention on Beast Boy, fired an ocular blast from his helmet’s singular eye towards the Titan. Dodging it by turning himself into a sparrow, Beast Boy flew forward in retaliation, zipping back and forth to prevent the ocular blasts from striking him. Once he got close enough, he turned into a gorilla and threw a powerful punch, only for See-More to generate a force field around himself from his eye, causing the furry fist to recoil back.

“Aagh!” Beast Boy grunted as he turned back to normal, shaking his fist. “That hurt!”

“Better you than me!” See-More replied as he fired another ocular blast, which Beast Boy quickly dodged by turning himself into a mouse, albeit not without a few singed hairs. Scurrying forward to meet the supervillain, Beast Boy turned himself back to normal and delivered an uppercut, knocking See-More’s head back. Seizing the initiative, Beast Boy threw another punch into his gut, causing See-More to nearly double-over. Then, as the Titan reared his fist back for another blow, See-More shot his head up and shot Beast Boy square in the chest, sending him flying back.

“Gaagh!” he screamed as he flew into a pile of wooden boxes.

“Beast Boy!!” Raven screamed as she fended off an attack from Kid Wykkyd as he teleported in from behind her shield and threw a punch towards her head. Raven ducked underneath and attempted to fire a swath of psychic energy at him in retaliation, only for Wykkyd to portal away. Raven growled before ducking underneath one of Jinx’ thrown hexes, striking one of the few remaining mercenaries attempting to assist the HIVE Five.

“Hey, watch it!” Raven shouted angrily towards the former supervillain.

“You watch it!” Jinx retorted as she threw another hex towards a group of criminals, shattering their guns in their hands. “And pay attention, while you’re at it!”

“Grrgh!” Raven growled, her fist glowing, only for another mercenary to make himself known. He was attempting to jump-start the disabled vehicle, and Raven nonchalantly ripped the man out with a dark tendril before moving on. Jinx scowled at her behavior before noticing Gizmo attempting to assemble a piece of machinery. She then ran towards her former teammate, causing Gizmo to drop what he was doing and attack her with a stab from his mechanical legs.

“Hello, Jinx,” Gizmo said, venom dripping from his voice. “Long time no see.”

“Would have preferred not seeing you again, to be honest,” Jinx admitted as she threw a hex towards Gizmo. The young boy scowled as he leapt to the side, pulling out a pair of energy pistols strapped to his backpack and began to fire towards Jinx. She dove for cover behind a concrete slab, ducking her head down while Gizmo continued to fire.

“Not so tough now, are you, Jinx?!” Gizmo taunted, his voice muffled by energy blasts. “Think yourself a superhero now? Newsflash, snot-brain, you’re nothing more than a no good traitor!”

“Better a traitor to you idiots than have to deal with your whining all the time!” Jinx countered as a plan quickly formulated in her head. “Plus, I nearly blinded myself staring at your bald head all the time.”

“IT’S A MEDICAL CONDITION!” Gizmo shouted as he replaced his spider-legs with a jetpack, flying up to get a better angle and continuing to fire at his former teammate and forcing her out of cover.

High above them, Starfire, having finished with the rocket-wielding criminals, continued to chase after the fleeing remnants, only to hastily stop herself as a screaming Cyborg flew by her. The Tamaranean deftly caught him and returned him to the ground just as Mammoth lifted up a forklift and charged towards them prongs-first. Starfire responded by firing a concentrated beam of ultraviolet energy, striking the forklift and sending Mammoth skidding back. Cyborg soon joined her in the assault, firing his sonic cannon at high frequency. Mammoth felt his ears ring in pain as he struggled to keep his makeshift shield up, but eventually the pain grew too great and he let go to try and deafen the noise, allowing Starfire’s attack to strike him dead-center. He bounced against the concrete repeatedly before pushing himself up, spitting dismissively as he did.

“Heh, that all you got?” Mammoth asked before charging forward once again. Cyborg looked at Starfire and nodded, and the two charged forward to meet the brute head on. Ducking underneath Mammoth’s gargantuan fist, Cyborg uppercutted while Starfire fired several starbolts into his back. Mammoth screamed in pain and thrashed around, only for Starfire to fly above his head and kick down just as Cyborg lifted him up from the waist. Mammoth’s head impacted the concrete hard enough to slightly crater it, but Mammoth merely growled and swiped Starfire away like a pesky fly.

Starfire briefly tumbled through the air before righting herself. Flying upwards with her hands glowing bright green, she took the opportunity to look around the battlefield. Her friends were still fighting against the members of the HIVE Five, the rest of the mercenaries long gone, while the truck still remained behind. With no one trying to make off with the evidence, and Raven taking the time to prevent anyone from outright destroying it, Starfire looked to where Nightwing was currently engaged with a mountain of Billy clones.

It was more akin to an acrobatic retreat than a straight up fight, but that was beside the point. Making her decision on the fly, Starfire’s body glowed bright green as she flew towards the combatants at top speed, plowing into the surprised Billy clones and scattering them like bowling pins. As they attempted to straighten themselves, Starfire reunited with Nightwing and took stock of his injuries.

“You’re hurt,” she noted, but Nightwing merely shook his head.

“I’ll be fine. The truck?”

“Still here, Raven’s magic is preventing anyone from messing with it.” Starfire briefly glanced down to look at the assembling Billy clones. “How are we going to beat him?”

“Billy can only make so many clones at one time before he overloads,” Nightwing replied. “He’s nearing that limit.”

Starfire, immediately catching on to Nightwing’s plan, smiled and floated back up. Without saying a word, she flew back down and fired several starbolts in rapid succession at Billy Numerous and his many clones, forcing the ones not directly hit to dive away. At the same time, Nightwing threw several concussive wing-dings at Billy.

“Why you little-!” Billy growled as he created more clones and sent them after both heroes. The Titans split and fled deeper within the maze of shipping containers as a red tsunami raced towards them. Occasionally, both would turn around to briefly fire back, forcing Billy to create more clones to compensate. A ringing in the back of his mind was beginning to form, but he shrugged if off as he continued his pursuit. Eventually, his wall of clones came across a dead end. Rather than turn around, he simply created more and, together with the rest of his clones, lifted the shipping containers over their heads to look at Nightwing and Starfire on the other side. Billy smirked, then threw the container towards them, only for the Tamaranean to merely catch it and place it to the side.

“…ya know, sometimes I forget how strong you are, Starfire,” Billy admitted.

“Thank you!” Starfire exclaimed jubilantly as her eyes glowed. Soon after, she fired beams of ultraviolet energy out of them, striking multiple Billy clones at once and forcing the others back. At the same time, Nightwing deployed a net from behind him, trapping the clones from both sides. Feeling alarmed, Billy started to create more and more clones with reckless abandon. The strain on his body increased, but he powered through as Starfire’s assault began to weaken.

“Why don’t y’all just give up?!” Billy suggested as he started pushing through. “I promise that-!”

He never got to finish his sentence as Nightwing tossed several bundles of small disks into the crowd of clones. The disks latched themselves across their bodies, and Billy didn’t even have a moment to guess what they were when electricity coursed through them. He screamed in agony from the voltage, his clones spasming before, one by one, they began forcibly reuniting with the original. Each reunion caused Billy to scream even louder, and once the final clone rejoined him, he fell into unconsciousness. Nightwing quickly tied him up and chained him to a steel pole, at which point Starfire lifted him up and flew them both towards the battlefield.

They smiled once they saw the tide beginning to turn in their favor. Beast Boy continued his fight against See-More, the young villain attempting to simultaneously protect himself with his forcefield while attacking with his ocular blasts. Beast Boy, meanwhile, relentlessly attacked his opponent with seemingly no regard to the hits he was taking, content with merely wearing See-More down. Evidently, judging by the villain’s heavy breaths and slightly torn outfit, the tactic was working. He was, however, sporting several wounds along his arms and chest, something that the Titans would obviously look at later.

When See-More fired yet another blast at Beast Boy, he turned himself into a rhino and charged straight through the attack. Panicking, and knowing his force field wouldn’t be enough to stop the charge, See-More enlarged his eye like a balloon as he tried to fly away, only for a hastily thrown hex to strike him back down and into Beast Boy’s path. See-More flew back from the hit, slamming into a metal wall, and cracked his helmet completely off. His real face, complete with two eyes, was briefly exposed before he fell into unconsciousness, and only then did Beast Boy turn back to normal and begin to nurse his injuries.

At the same time, Mammoth was thrown into the wall next to See-More’s unconscious body. Before the brute could reorient himself, Cyborg ran up and delivered a flying knee into his gut, causing him to double over. Cyborg then proceeded to wallop the man repeatedly across the head with heavy cybernetic fists, finishing off a dazed Mammoth with a dual sonic cannon. The sound waves rattled Mammoth’s mind, and for a moment he screamed before falling over.

“Good riddance,” Cyborg remarked as he helped Beast Boy tie the two villains up.

Far away from them, Raven continued her fight against Kid Wykkyd, whipping tendrils and throwing magical swaths towards him while he continued to dodge with his portals. Eventually, he formed a portal underneath Raven and attempted to pull her in, only for Raven to turn around and reach through the portal and grab him instead. Surprised, Wykkyd barely let out a grunt before Raven forcibly pulled him through with a tendril. Then, with a snarl on her face, she slammed him repeatedly against the ground before throwing him against the truck. In a daze, Raven proceeded to bombard him with dark magic for several moments, the hints of a manic grin appearing before she stopped herself. Wykkyd stared at her for a scant second before falling over, unconscious, and after Raven confirmed he was alright she wrapped him up with magical chains. She regarded him for a few more moments in deep contemplation before a large creaking sound redirected her attention.

She quickly found the source to be Jinx, having enacted her plan to trap Gizmo among several wires from nearby cranes. The wires were threaded and strung him up like a spider’s web, yet despite his obvious predicament he continued to thrash and curse at them like the child he was.

“You let me out of here this instant, you dweebs!” he demanded as Starfire tied him up and brought him down. Lying on his back, Gizmo stared up defiantly at the Titans as they stared down upon him, regarding them with cold indifference.

“You’re not in a position to demand anything, Gizmo,” Nightwing reminded him as Raven rejoined the others. Seeing Beast Boy’s state, she carefully walked over to check his wounds, but he waved her off and smiled instead. Cyborg, answering Nightwing’s unspoken command, went over to check on the truck, while the Titan leader began his interrogation.

“Now then,” Nightwing continued, “we have a few questions for you, if you don’t mind.”

“Oh, like I’m going to answer your stupid questions,” Gizmo replied. Nightwing stared for a few more moments before nodding.

“I figured as such.” Nightwing then stood up and looked at Raven, tilting his head towards Gizmo. Suddenly the young genius felt a pang of fear course through him as the furious half-demon towered over him. She elongated her body to unnatural levels, dark tendrils ejecting out of her body as her hood covered her face.

“H-hey! What are you doing?!” Gizmo fearfully asked as he attempted to futilely get away. “S-stop it!”

“What’s the matter?” Raven asked, her voice sounding warped as her cloak opened, revealing a seemingly endless shadow underneath. “Afraid of a little _dark_?”

Then, without warning, tendrils wrapped themselves around Gizmo and proceeded to slowly drag him inside. He flailed and screamed in fright as she continued to drag him forward, the Titans looking stoically onward.

“J-Jinx! Help me!” Gizmo begged, but Jinx (knowing the game the Titans were really playing) shook her head.

“Not until you tell us what we want,” she reminded him. As the void grew ever closer, Gizmo flailed one last time before relenting.

“Alright, I’ll talk, I’ll talk!” As soon as he said the words, Raven immediately let go and returned to normal. The Titans all looked at him, Gizmo taking the time to bring his breathing back under control, before returning their gazes.

“Wh…what do you want to know?”

“For starters,” Nightwing began, “when did you and the rest of the HIVE Five start working for Brother Blood?”

“Blood?” Gizmo replied. “You’d think I’d work for that freak after what he did to me? Pfft, as if.”

“You’re lying. You’ll do anything for a quick buck…or to save your own skin.” Jinx pointed out. Gizmo didn’t answer, glaring at her, so she continued. “So tell me, which is it?”

Gizmo remained silent, apparently unwilling to answer. With a sigh, Nightwing snapped his fingers and Raven prepared to start again, only for Gizmo to quickly drop his composure and break.

“Alright, alright! Geez…” he declared. He took a few steady breaths, and continued. “Look, I don’t know what he wants. Me and the Five were hired only recently, supposed to make sure you dweebs wouldn’t try to interfere.”

“Great job there,” Beast Boy joked.

“Yeah, sure, laugh it up. You won’t be laughing once his plan works.” At Gizmo’s declaration, the Titans grew silent and stared him down.

“You know what his game is? Talk, now!” Raven demanded, hoisting him up to her face. Gizmo looked fearful once again, only this time Jinx took the young villain away from her. She stared her down before looking at Gizmo.

“You heard the lady. Talk,” Jinx said.

Gizmo paused, wondering whether or not he would take his chances with the Titans or with the crazed madman who’d hired him. Seeing Raven’s enraged visage, he quickly made his choice.

“They didn’t tell us nuthin,” he admitted. “Didn’t even know I was working with the guy until we were halfway here. But the mercs…they liked to talk when they didn’t think I was listening. They didn’t know much, either, but all they knew was that whatever Blood’s plan is, it involves those things. Set them loose in the city or something.”

“The creatures?” Starfire asked, and Gizmo nodded. “What are they?”

“Lady, I have no idea,” Gizmo darkly answered. “If I were you, I’d get out of this city before he makes whatever he wants to happen actually happen.”

The Titans regarded Gizmo for a few more moments, studying him to see if they could get anything else, before noticing Cyborg rejoin them. A frown was on his face, and in his hands was a single datapad.

“Bad news, guys,” Cyborg said. “The gunfire destroyed most of the evidence. All I got was this.”

“Can you get into it?” Beast Boy asked, slightly disappointed.

“I could, but without the decryption key it’ll take a long time. Security—” Cyborg was interrupted by a squawk from Gizmo as Jinx lifted him up and turned him over. Ignoring his indignant shouts, she tore off his backpack and opened it, fishing her hand inside before grabbing a small USB stick and tossing it to Cyborg.

“How did you-?” Gizmo began.

“Please, you and I both you couldn’t help yourself.”

Gizmo remained silent for a moment. “…Alright, you got me there.”

Cyborg, nodding in thanks, scanned the USB for harmful substances and found none. He then downloaded its contents into his memory banks, allowing him to access the datapad.

“Alright, I’m in. Thanks, Jinx.”

“No prob, Stone,” Jinx replied with a knowing smirk. Cyborg shook his head in amusement while the other Titans looked at Gizmo.

“So…uh… I’m going to jail, aren’t I?”

“No, you’re too young, dude,” Beast Boy replied. “You’re going to juvie!”

“That’s the same thing!”

* * *

 

They rounded up the criminals as best they could. A handful managed to escape, mostly the upper echelons, but overall the Titans and Jinx considered the operation a success. Cyborg was already downloading the gathered information into the dedicated server at Titans Tower. The police were loading the handcuffed criminals into armored cars, preparing them for detention while confiscating anything they could get their hands on.

“So, what now?” Jinx asked, leaning against a building’s exhaust pipe.

“Just gonna decipher and compile everything,” Cyborg replied. “Should take about a day or so, with everything that’s on here.”

“And once we do, the Brother of Blood will be vanquished.” Starfire smiled brightly. Jinx couldn’t help but share in her enthusiasm. Even when they were enemies, the Tamaranean was always infectious. She then turned her attention towards Raven, who remained offset from the others.

“Yo, Dark and Broody over there,” Jinx called out. “What’s up?”

Raven turned to regard Jinx for a moment before sighing. “Just…thinking about everything. That creature, it…overwhelmed me, for some reason.”

“Any idea what it was?” Beast Boy asked, but Raven shook her head.

“No, I don’t, but that’s not what scares me.” The Titans directed their full attention towards Raven, who took a deep breath and continued. “Before it went berserk, something was channeled through it. Whatever that creature was, it acted as a conduit for dark magic…magic I recognized.”

“What do you mean?” Nightwing asked, alarm steadily growing. When Raven looked back up at him fearfully, he immediately understood.

“That magic…was the same kind I use. The kind I get from my father.”

Raven’s words hung over everyone like a guillotine. Their breaths hitched, and for a moment no one knew what to say.

“…Shit,” Jinx finally broke the silence. “Please don’t tell that means what I think it means?”

“Possibly,” Nightwing admitted with a gulp.

“Trigon…” Beast Boy murmured before looking at Raven.

“Friend Raven, you have nothing to fear,” Starfire declared while walking over to an increasingly distraught Raven and hugging her. “He can’t get through without going through you, and you are the strongest person I know.”

“Am I?” Raven asked, breaking away from Starfire. “I’m a time bomb. I lose control for an instant, and he gets in. What if all that’s been going on has been just been to get to me? All the stress, and anger, and fear…”

“Rae, trust me,” Beast Boy interrupted and placed his hand comfortingly on her shoulder. “We’re not going to let that happen to you. We’re your family.”

The Titans, following Beast Boy’s example, smiled warmly towards Raven. She looked upon them for what seemed like ages before sighing and smiling in turn.

“You good?” Jinx asked once she felt the moment was done. Raven looked back at her and sighed.

“Maybe. Once everything calms down, I’ll be fine. Sorry for—”

“No need to apologize. I get it, I’m not the most trustworthy person on the planet. If it makes you feel any better, I sometimes steal a piece of candy when I go shopping.”

The Titans stared at her blankly. “…Really?” Cyborg finally asked, and Jinx shrugged.

“What, it’s a piece of candy. Who cares? Besides, a year and a half ago I used to rob banks. That’s progress, in my book.”

Cyborg sighed at her answer, as did the other Titans. To his surprise, however, Raven actually chuckled. Jinx smiled triumphantly at this before stretching her arms.

“Well, it’s been fun and all, but I better head out,” she stated.

“You’re leaving already?” Starfire asked, and Jinx nodded.

“Yeah. Don’t get me wrong, it was nice to see you guys again, but frankly if I’m away from Jump City for any longer the feds will start asking questions. Ciao.”

Jinx waved at the Titans as she ran off, the Titans waving her off as she jumped down from the rooftop and out of sight. Part of them wanted to extend an invitation to her for the next day’s festivities, but at the same time knew she wouldn’t accept. Jinx didn’t seem to be the type of girl to do birthday parties.

“Are we good to celebrate tomorrow? Now that we possibly know what Blood is planning?” Raven tentatively asked, still nervous.

“Maybe not,” Beast Boy admitted. “But the way I see it, if Blood’s entire plan hinges on you snapping under the stress he’s caused, the best way to counteract him is to make yourself less stressed. Stop playing his game and play a different one. Celebrating Ruby’s birthday might be the best way for us to do that.”

“As friend Beast Boy says, ‘there’s no party like a Titans party’,” Starfire quoted, and Beast Boy smiled.

“Exactly! And if that creep does try something, we’ll go in and kick his ass.”

“That doesn’t mean we should let our guard down,” Nightwing interjected as they arrived at a secluded section of the docks. Pressing a button on his gauntlet, the T-Sub broke through the water’s surface and opened the canopies, allowing the Titans to hop inside. “Cy, I want constant surveillance on the Blood Cathedral. He does anything, I want to know about it.”

“Will do,” Cyborg responded as he hopped in the pilot’s seat, strapping himself in. “I’ll also start forwarding the information out to our friends in the media. Get him so wrapped up in allegations he won’t be able to do anything other than ‘defend’ himself.”

“He’s usually cut back when evidence of his wrongdoings came out in the past,” Starfire noted, nodding in approval. Raven looked at her teammates for several moments before nodding. The stress of the last few days was getting to her, causing her to lash out when she really shouldn’t and she doubted charging straight in would make things any better. For all they knew, jumping straight in was Blood’s exact plan. No, it was better to wait for Cyborg to finish decrypting everything in the data pad, allowing them to catch Brother Blood and preventing the slimy man from getting away as he always did.

No matter what happened, Raven vowed he wasn’t going to win.

* * *

 

Brother Blood sat grimly in his red-leather chair, nursing a cup of wine in his hands. His latest shipment was supposed to arrive half an hour ago, only for it to never show. He already knew what had happened, so when one of his followers burst into his office in a panic he calmly turned his head to address her.

“Father, the Titans! They—” she began.

“I know, Margaret,” Blood interrupted, taking a drink of wine in the process. The girl silenced herself, waiting for her leader to finish before he swallowed and regarded her again. “How much was lost?”

The girl gulped nervously before answering, “Some of the mercenaries were able to escape, but the HIVE Five and the other unfortunate souls weren’t so lucky.”

“Hmm… So much for hired help,” Blood frowned then pressed on, “And the shipment?”

“Destroyed,” Margaret admitted. “There was an…incident involving the Dark One. It tried to escape, so the mercenaries killed it.”

In a striking reaction, Blood snarled at the news in absolute fury, sending Margaret into a brief fit of fear. Brother Blood quickly composed himself, however, and calmly sighed.

“That’s…unfortunate. It seems as though the Titans are beginning to catch on to our plans,” he talked to himself before waving the girl away. “Go, I must commune with the Allfather.”

“O-of course, Father Blood.” Margaret bowed and shuffled out of the room, closing the door behind her. Brother Blood waited for a few more moments, hearing the sound of her footsteps fade away. Once they fully disappeared, Blood snapped and angrily threw his wine glass against the wall, splashing the red liquid against the mahogany walls and sending shards of glass flying. One managed to slice him across the face, sending a trickle of blood running down his cheek, but he paid it no heed as he stomped towards an empty wall.

Pressing his hand against a single panel, a secret door appeared in the floor next to him, revealing a staircase that led down to a small chamber. He walked down the stairs, entering a small room lit by candles, the walls stained dark red in a dripping pattern. Some splotches were duller than others, while some were still quite fresh. Memories flew through Brother Blood’s mind as he walked towards the far end of the room, of the various activities and rituals performed in this consecrated hall, those most sacred to his flock. He stopped in front of a large metal altar and knelt, staring up at the stone statue of a snarling Trigon. Taking a deep breath, he began to pray.

“Lord Trigon,” he began, “it appears as though our enemies will soon be at our door. I seek your guidance.”

For a moment, all was quiet. Not a sound was heard, only the sound of Blood’s own breathing. That silence was broken as a load roar echoed from the stone statue, its four eyes glowing red before bursting into flames. With a load creak, the head turned to face Brother Blood intensely, but rather than showing fear the zealous priest appeared relieved.

“Lord Trigon, a pleasure as always,” Brother Blood greeted warmly, but if Trigon shared such sentiments he didn’t show them.

“ _Insect_ ,” Trigon began, his booming voice echoing with the voice of a legion, “ _do not pretend to regale me as though I were one of your petty sycophants. My patience runs thin, even with you._ ”

“Of course.” Brother Blood stood up and dusted himself off, no longer playing the part of a dutiful worshipper. “My words ring true, however. It appears as though we may have overplayed our hand, and the Titans are beginning to catch on. There’s no doubt in my mind that they will put the pieces together soon. I suggest that we—”

“ _YOU DARE TO COMMAND ME?!_ ” Trigon boomed, his voice sending Brother Blood flying back a few feet. The fire spewing from Trigon’s eyes intensified, and the room began to warp and glow from the intense heat. Blood began to feel terrified, but rather than show it, he merely stood up and dusted himself off again.

“Of course not, Master. I was merely trying to make a suggestion. I am your most humble servant on this sinful world, and live to do your bidding.”

The fire raged for a few more moments before subtly going down. Pleased that his words appeared to have a calming effect on the demon, Blood pressed forward. “What do you suggest we do?”

“ _My daughter’s walls are crumbling,_ ” Trigon replied, “ _Even now, after her pitiful attempts at reinforcement. Soon, there will be nothing left of them. All I need is one, final push on the weakest stone, and my path will be opened. Call off your agents. Allow them to believe their present course is the correct one. Then, when the time is right, strike. Do this, and you will experience power you have never had before._ ”

For the first time in the entire conversation, Brother Blood let out a wicked, toothy grin. “Of course, Master. Is there anything else you require?”

Trigon, pleased with his servant’s obedience, chuckled. The sound sent shivers up Blood’s spine, but he paid rapt attention towards them. “ _Yes. You know what I desire. Make it so_.”

Brother Blood nodded and calmly walked back up the stairs, the stone statue extinguishing itself as he did. He walked to his office’s door and opened it, where he saw Margaret sweeping the floors of the main hall with a broom. Brother Blood stared at her for a few moments, studying her with his intense eyes.

“Margaret, my dear?” Blood called out, causing the girl to stop what she was doing and look towards him.

“Yes, Father?”

“Could you come with me, please? The Allfather requires of you.”

[~][~]


	21. The Dam Breaks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Titans change their plans after RWBY and JNPR uncover a horrifying possibility, only for Brother Blood to launch a surprise attack on Titans Tower led by an old adversary.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 15: The Dam Breaks **

[~][~]

It was the morning after the showdown at the docks, and the teenage heroes sat assembled once again inside the conference room, looking over the gathered evidence with a fine-toothed comb. The table’s built-in holographic projector had constructed a recreation of the dockyard, showing everything that occurred from all possible angles. Every hero, villain, and more was displayed in crisp detail.

For the eight Remnantians, however, they were focused on one and only one thing.

“Play it again,” Ruby ordered, staring at the windowless cage. Victor promptly complied, rewinding the footage to when the object first appeared. They saw the nervous and, for some, outright terrified expressions of the mercenaries, how they all kept their weapons ready to fire at a moment’s notice, how the creature inside the cage appeared to respond to said fear. When it began to go berserk, Ruby couldn’t help but quickly shoot her eyes towards a still tired looking Raven before refocusing.

When the reconstructed mercenaries fired their weapons, Ruby and her teammates focused on the cage, trying to ascertain what was inside. All they could see was a mass of pitch-black flesh with bone-white claws and red eyes peering out into the outside world. A frown crossed Weiss’ face, which only deepened once the firing stopped and black smoke billowed out of the ruined cage.

Victor paused the recording then turned to regard the Remnantians, a worried look on his face.

“Well?” he asked. “What do you think?”

Teams RWBY and JNPR looked among themselves then back at the Titans and the activated television monitor. They saw Batman’s face looking at them with stoic concern yet also expectant. Finally, after a moment, Weiss sighed and leaned forward across the table.

“Let’s start from the beginning,” she said. “This…creature Blood had imported was clearly not alive. There were no heat signatures, no heartbeat, nothing but a black void. Victor, if you please?”

Victor nodded and adjusted the display, showcasing the cage only. Ren continued for Weiss, “The cage itself was heavily insulated, meaning we can’t tell exactly what it is through a silhouette. Glimpses reveal that the creature was black and white in color, with red eyes. Raven, through her scrying, detected no higher brain functions, simply a desire to destroy everything around itself. It also apparently reacted strongly to the intense negative emotions inside the dockyard. Upon death, it disintegrated into smoke, leaving no trace of its existence other than the archival footage.”

Ren paused, deep in thought. After a moment, Batman spoke up, “ _Your thoughts?_ ”

Ruby took a deep breath before looking back at the detective, “There’s three options. One, it’s a brand-new bioweapon. Two, a demon of some sorts. Or three,” Ruby took another breath then steeled her face. “Or three, it’s a Grimm.”

Ruby could feel the air being sucked out of the room. The tension was palpable, only broken once Dick started to speak.

“How certain?” he asked.

“Almost one-hundred percent. It fits all the criteria: rapid decomposition into smoke upon death, highly aggressive and destructive, black and bone-white physical appearance, and no real capacity for thought,” Pyrrha rattled off. “If it’s anything but a Grimm, I’d be surprised.”

“Wait, wait,” Garfield interjected, holding his hands up slightly. “Grimm aren’t native to Earth, and the only ones ever encountered here were destroyed by the Justice League when you guys arrived in Metropolis. Right?”

Everyone looked at Batman, who was rubbing his chin as he thought over the implications. “ _It’s possible that, in the chaos and confusion, a few samples might have been misplaced or missed entirely. Just a few samples of tar could possibly allow for more to spawn._ ”

“Weren’t Grimm civilization-ending threats back on Remnant?” M’gann asked, and Jaune nodded.

“From what I remembered in history class, nearly half of all civilizations in Remnant’s history were destroyed by Grimm. We molded everything around keeping them back. Walls, military strategies, weapons, even agriculture and trade. As much as we hated it, our society revolved around the Grimm,” he revealed.

“And yet, despite all of that, we know next to nothing about them,” Weiss clarified. “There were no scientific explanations towards their origin. The most we could figure out was their behavior and that, as Metropolis showed, spawn from those pools of tar. _We_ didn’t even know about that last part until Metropolis.”

“That’s not the most pressing issue,” Blake added, pointing to the cage. “That cage tells me, assuming this is a Grimm as we all expect, it was captured almost immediately after it spawned. Otherwise it would have killed itself. If Blood’s been bringing in multiple shipments, that can only mean…”

“They’re being manufactured?” Raven suggested, and Blake nodded. Frowning, Raven brought her fingers together while resting her elbows on the table. “That would explain why Blood was buying it. Someone, somehow, managed to grab hold of samples from Metropolis and has begun to manufacture Grimm and sell them. I can think of a lot of people who can use such a terror weapon.”

R’as al Ghul and his League of Shadows immediately sprang to both Dick Grayson’s and Batman’s mind, but they refocused themselves on who’d be responsible for making the Grimm in the first place.

“Luthor. It has to be,” Dick suggested. “He’s the only one crazy enough to consider it and has the resources to even attempt it successfully.”

“ _As much as I hate to admit it,_ ” Batman cut in, “ _Luthor is many things, but he is not crazy. Everything he does is for a reason, often self-advancement. This has his fingerprints written all over it. I’ll notify the rest of the League immediately, put them on high alert and monitor LexCorp more closely. In the meantime, how close are you to deciphering the data pad you recovered?”_

“Just a few hours, Batman,” Victor revealed. “There’s a lot of stuff in here. Stuff that can put a lot of very bad people away for a very long time, and not just Blood. I’m talking smugglers, cartels, illegal arms dealers, human traffickers. The White Portuguese is just one part of a multinational smuggling ring, and this connects to all of them. That is the _only_ reason why we aren’t jumping in right now.”

“ _I assume you’ve taken the necessary precautions?_ ” Batman asked. The fact that such a detailed shipping manifest was found on the White Portuguese was an immediate cause of concern and raised so many red flags that it was almost comical. For his part, Victor looked almost offended that the question even had to be asked.

“It’s been isolated to a server offsite for decryption. It won’t even connect to Titans Tower or any other system until it is verified and secure from any viruses using the best anti-virus software I can make.”

 Batman nodded. “ _I’ll have Mister Terrific assist you with the decryption. In the meantime, continue to monitor Blood. As soon as you have everything, take him down. I’ll get to work setting up surveillance on Luthor. Batman out._ ”

The young heroes nodded as the Dark Knight signed off. Everyone released a breath that they didn’t know they were holding then looked back at each other.

“So, what happens now?” Yang asked, rubbing her hand across her knuckles. “Personally, I say screw it and charge straight in, kick his ass and stop him here and now.”

“We do that, and we’d not only be charging in blind, we’d run the risk of tipping off his entire network that we’re onto them. Even more than what we’ve already done,” Dick pointed out. “And that’s ignoring the potential for civilians getting caught in the crossfire. As much as I agree with you, if we wait just a few hours, we stand to get a lot more.”

“Every hour we wait is another hour for things to go horribly wrong,” Jaune said. “The safer option is to go in. Besides, if Blood’s as smart as you say he is, he’s likely already figured out we’re onto him. Waiting now is just giving him more time to escape. Or worse.”

Dick hummed and nodded. Truth be told, he agreed with what Jaune and Yang were saying. Their present course of action was highly risky, almost stupidly so. He had half a mind to just drop everything and charge straight in, damn the consequences.

But, at the same time, he remembered the times when he and others did just that to try and stop something or rescue someone they cared about. That almost always played straight into the villain’s hands. Jason Todd himself died doing just that, lured into a trap by the Joker and beaten to death with a crowbar. Sure, he was alive now, but that was thanks to a dip in a Lazarus Pit. There was no guarantee of that happening to them.

“You’re certain that waiting will allow us to get more, right?” Ruby suddenly asked. Dick looked back up at Ruby in slight surprise and nodded.

“Almost as certain as you guys are of that thing being a Grimm,” he answered. Ruby hummed contemplatively at his answer, nodding to her thoughts before standing up. She looked at the holographic table display before turning around to address all three teams.

“Right now, our biggest concern should be getting people out of danger. Regardless of whether we can finish deciphering the data in time, a fight will go down and I’m comfortable waiting more than a few hours. How soon can we get the immediate area around the Church evacuated without tipping Blood off?”

“I can get in touch with the JPD and city hall to get the ball rolling,” Victor responded. “Last time they did something like this for us took about six hours.”

Ruby nodded and hummed at his answer, rubbing her fingers across her chin in thought. “And how long will it take for the data pad to be fully decrypted?”

“At most, ten.”

Ruby frowned. That would be far too long for her liking, and the faces on the rest of the heroes told her they felt the same way. She stood up straighter and began to speak.

“Then here’s what I suggest: we notify the JPD to issue a discrete evacuation. Once that is done, even if the data isn’t fully decrypted, we move in and bring Brother Blood to justice and kill any Grimm we find.”

The others thought it over for a few moments, then nodded. “I’d be a lot more comfortable fighting in the city knowing everyone else was safe,” Blake admitted, remembering both the Breach of Vale and Brainiac’s Invasion. The last thing she needed right now was innocent people getting injured when they could prevent it.

“I’ll send the word,” Dick declared. “Get the JPD to evacuate everyone within ten blocks of Blood’s cathedral. While we wait, we’ll continue as planned. Then, when everything’s ready, we kick his ass.”

* * *

 

 “Mr. Blood, I wanted to thank you for having me on such short notice,” Lois Lane began as she sat across from Sebastian Blood.

“Please, Ms. Lane, call me Sebastian. Mr. Blood was my father, and his father, and his father before him.” He chuckled, seemingly amused with himself. “You get the idea.”

“Isn’t Sebastian part of that naming tradition, as well?”

“You are very astute, Ms. Lane. May I call you Lois?”

“Ms. Lane will be fine, thank you,” Lois replied, her eyes boring into Brother Blood’s. His face was calm, amused and jovial without a care in the world. It was like he didn’t even care why they were having this hastily thrown together interview in the first place.

“A shame. I always prefer a person’s given name. Makes a more powerful connection between people, in my opinion. But I can understand why a reporter of your caliber would prefer a more professional distance.”

Lois saw the hidden meaning behind his flattery instantly: a classic attempt to ingratiate the interviewer with the interviewee, casting a better light on himself in the process. Better men had tried, and Lois had to stop herself from rolling her eyes.

“Be that as it may, we’re not here to talk about my connections with people.” For a split second, Blood’s demeanor broke. His face showed a different set of emotions: annoyance, disdain, rage, and many more. Then they were gone as he shifted back towards his calmer persona.

“Yes, it’s a shame we had to meet like this. It’s been a truly terrible state of events here in Jump City. Crime hasn’t been this bad in years.”

“Of which there are serious allegations, with supposed evidence and credibility to back them up, that you are responsible for,” Lois pointed out. “I received documents and footage showing an illicit smuggling operation was working inside the Jump City dockyards. Last night, police seized high-tech weapons and drugs from a damaged cargo freighter, and according to my sources, they were supposed to go to you.”

Sebastian Blood chuckled. “Please, Ms. Lane. Don’t tell me you believe that? What need of weapons and drugs does my church have? We are a peaceful flock, devoted to spiritual enlightenment and not needless and senseless violence.”

“So you say, yet your church openly worships a Highfather many have compared to Trigon. I don’t think I need to remind you of what that being has done in the past.”

“Ms. Lane, I assure you that the Highfather is separate from the being known as Trigon.” Blood was lying through his teeth, Lois could tell, but let him continue. “Trigon desires subjugation and dominance, while the Highfather only desires that His followers embrace themselves and not be held back by societal norms. I’ve repeatedly stressed this over the years.”

“And yet, the allegations keep coming year after year. That, despite your reassurances, the Highfather and Trigon are one and the same. In addition, I have other sources that tell me your church has, for centuries, ritualized heinous practices including abuse, forced starvation and isolation, torture, and human sacrifice among others.”

“I will admit that, in times long since passed, our church had conducted heinous acts in the name of our Lord,” Blood admitted, “But then again, which religion hasn’t? Witch trials, religious persecution, forced conversion, acts of violence and many more were done in the name of religion all over the world, before and now. We’ve moved past them, and to hear misguided people assert that we still do breaks my heart.”

“Then explain why several of your followers have been linked to various crimes across Jump City these past few weeks?” Lois pulled out several pictures of hooded cultists, and Blood’s eyes darted towards them. “This one was taken several hours before an apartment complex was burned to the ground in an act of arson. Someone sabotaged the gas lines, and the inferno killed twenty people while leaving dozens of families destitute. One of the victims was a member of your church and recovered security footage showed that he conveniently disappeared from all cameras prior to the tampering.”

“Are you accusing that Brother Jonathan was responsible for that tragedy?” Blood asked, anger seeping into his voice. “I will not stand for this insult to his memory. He was a loving father and husband, one whom we all mourned. To say that he was responsible for this arson…”

“I’m not accusing anything,” Lois clarified, “merely pointing out the coincidence.”

“I should hope not, Ms. Lane. My church doesn’t take too kindly to false accusations.”

“Yes, l am aware of your church’s reputation. Sue anyone who tries to talk negatively about your church, correct?”

“Those attacks,” Blood began, pointing his finger accusingly at a still calm Lois Lane, “are directly infringing upon our constitutionally granted rights. We will not stand for such lies, and only wish for the truth to come out.”

“So, threatening to sue every media outlet and individual who even thinks about reporting on your church outside of a fluff piece counts as such? It creates the impression that your church has more lawyers than worshippers. If I remember correctly, didn’t your church finally achieve federal recognition after years of constant lawsuits?”

“Unfortunately, as this ‘interview’ clearly shows, my church is still misunderstood and vilified. If I don’t fight back, the slander and libel would continue.”

“Well, you can be happy to know that the Daily Planet only wants to report the truth and will go to any lengths to ensure it’s brought to light.” Loise smiled and the two locked eyes for several moments. Then, after what seemed like an eternity, Brother Blood rose to his feet and dusted his ceremonial robes off.

“I’m afraid I must cut this discussion short, Ms. Lane,” he declared with no justification.

“A shame,” Lois said as she rose to shake his hand, a formality more than anything. “Thank you for taking the time to sit with me today. I know we’ll be seeing each other shortly.”

Sebastian Blood said nothing as he turned and walked away, closing the interview room door behind him. Lois and Jimmy Olsen stared at the door for a few moments before Lois smiled and turned to face her cameraman.

“I think that went rather well.”

* * *

 

‘ _Damn that woman,_ ’ Brother Blood thought as he entered his limousine, beckoning the driver towards his cathedral. Deep down, he knew how an interview with the famous Lois Lane of the Daily Planet would go, but he still hoped he could have swayed her to his side. Doing so would have been a powerful boon, but it was ultimately a fool’s hope. Frankly, she outmaneuvered him, plain and simple. Got him riled up, countered his points with expertly crafted rebuttals, and in the end,  he simply got up and left. She’d be sure to note that little detail in her report, and given her tone, he figured she knew more than what she was letting on. After all, it was no secret just how close Lois was to the rest of the superhero community, especially Superman.

The walls were closing in. He could feel it in his bones.

The limo finally arrived at his cathedral, and his driver opened the car door and escorted him inside the building. He was greeted by all his followers, hundreds of them, garbed in their ceremonial hoods and kneeling in prayer. They did this every time the more sordid details of their faith sprung to light, praying to their Highfather, to Trigon, that the nonbelievers would turn away. This time, however, Blood knew it wouldn’t be enough.

“My brothers and sisters,” Blood declared as he walked up to the podium, entering his familiar priestly façade, “what has you so upset?”

“Father,” one of them answered, “nonbelievers and heretics threaten to tear down this hall. We pray for salvation.”

Brother Blood nodded at the answer, having expected it. “Wise words, for our enemies are at our door. But, do not lose hope, for this is all part of the Highfather’s plan.”

“What do you mean?” another asked, confusion seeping through her voice.

“I communed with the Highfather,” Blood revealed to audible gasps. “He informed me of our current path, and rest assured, salvation is at hand.”

More gasps, and Blood couldn’t help but grow a toothy grin.

“You don’t mean…?” someone asked, unable to finish their sentence.

“I am. Prepare the ritual. Salvation for all is nigh,” Blood commanded. At once, scores of cultists rose to their feet and bowed before heading into their sacred ritual chamber. Only one remained, and Blood beckoned him forward once they were alone.

“What news do you have?” he asked, and the cultist bowed reverently before answering.

“The police have started to order an evacuation of the surrounding city, saying there’s been a toxic gas leak, scheduled maintenance, and other excuses. A ruse, no doubt. They’re encircling us, trying to cut off routes of potential escape.”

“Let them come; we can handle the police,” Blood remarked as he walked to his desk and poured himself a glass of chardonnay. “And the Titans?”

“Resting for the final battle, from what we can tell. I believe they intend to attack as soon as the area is evacuated, to try and avoid collateral damage.”

“One can’t help but admire their dedication to protecting the innocent,” Blood admitted. It was, truly, an admirable quality. Shame that their efforts frequently came into conflict with his own. “Let them rest, for now. It’ll be much sweeter when they fall that way.”

He could almost imagine the looks on their faces, and he smiled wickedly.

“Of course, father,” the cultist bowed again, then looked up at his face. “But what of Raven? We need her for the ritual to succeed.”

“Leave that to me,” Blood replied. “Go, join the others. Soon, my child, we will be saved.”

The cultist bowed once again then hurried away. Blood watched him leave, downed the rest of his glass, then walked towards a far, decrepit door. He opened it with a loud creek, lighting a candelabra waiting for him on a nearby desk while grabbing a suitcase with his free hand, and walked down the stairs. Blood entered a cold, damp dungeon, the walls lined with moldy stone and rusted iron bars. They were all empty, save for one lit by a pair of candles. A single man, bare to the world and exposing his plentiful cuts and bruises, was held up by iron shackles to the wall. His head hung down and he stared at his feet, utterly defeated and broken.

“Oh, Arthur. Dear Arthur,” Blood began, causing the broken man to slowly turn his gaze towards him. His expression was blank, devoid of meaning. Blood smiled and caressed the captive’s bearded face.

“I…I…” Arthur began, but Brother Blood silenced him.

“Hush now, child. Save your strength. You will need it soon, for I have a mission for you.”

Arthur gulped then nodded his head. “Of course, father. Anything for you.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” Blood replied while freeing the captive man. Arthur rubbed his wrists together. Even now, after months of confinement, Blood couldn’t help but note his muscular appearance. He would need that soon.

Blood opened the case, presenting its contents to his captive. Arthur looked inside to see a familiar black and silver uniform, with yellow orbs embedded into the hands, helmet, and chest. He looked back up at Brother Blood in surprise, with a hint of jubilation mixed in.

“My dear Doctor Light,” Blood began, “how would you like to be the one to break Raven?”

Doctor Light stared at him for a moment, then smiled.

* * *

 

“Trick or treat!” the trio of costumed children announced as Koriand’r opened the door.

“Oh, you are the adorable!” she cooed, crouching down to get a closer look. “And who are you supposed to be?”

“I’ma vampire!” one of them shouted, spreading his arms wide and causing his short, black cape to billow.

“How fearsome!” Kori declared, causing the young boy to smile. She then looked towards a young girl and smiled. “And you?”

“I’m a mermaid,” she replied bashfully, looking down towards her blue-scaled fin covering her legs and feet. The Tamaranean could easily see the seam where the tail split, allowing her to walk, and nodded her head.

“You’re a very pretty one.” The girl smiled shyly, swaying from side to side, and only then did Koriand’r turn to face the last girl. She recognized the costume immediately, and she couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride and jubilation at her choice of attire. “Well, well, well! Do we have ourselves a fellow Tamaranean here?”

The girl, dressed as Starfire, smiled brightly and held up two neon green glowsticks in response. Seeing this, Kori couldn’t help but smile and laugh while clapping her hands.

“Well done, well done!” she cheered before reaching back inside Titans Tower and pulling out a large plastic bowl filled with candy. She gleefully placed several handfuls into each child’s waiting bags, keeping sure to make each allocation equal, then waved them off. The children waved back and rejoined their parents, and Kori watched them leave with a warm smile on her face before closing the door. She sighed contently, then turned to face Weiss, who was watching the trick-or-treaters leave from a side window.

“Oh my god, that was adorable!” Weiss squealed, an unexpected action from the former heiress. At least it was before the Halloween participants first arrived. Starfire had quickly found out something the other members of team RWBY were already aware of: Weiss had an extreme weakness to anything she considered cute, puppies chief among them. Costumed children asking for candy had become another cute thing for her to obsess over.

It ended up becoming sort of a problem after Weiss decided to make it rain candies to the first group of children she had. She went through an entire bucket before Yang could stop her. At the very least those were some very happy children. Seeing how there were no other children nor families now, the two girls headed back towards the main room of Titans Tower. There, instead of the usual sight of teenagers crowding around the flat screen, they saw everyone checking their gear, preparing for the upcoming fight.

“Rubber bullets or real?” Ren asked as he cleaned Stormflower, one of the machine pistols fully disassembled.

“Real,” Ruby answered as she continued her maintenance of her sniper-scythe. “Rubber bullets won’t do anything to a Grimm.”

“What about the cultists?” Dick asked as he checked a few of his wing-dings. He felt that he already knew the answer, but he wanted them to say it. Ruby was silent for a moment, pondering what to say, but Yang spoke first.

“Far as I’m concerned,” Yang declared, “there’s a significant possibility that they’ve been trying to smuggle Grimm into the city _and_ undoubtedly caused everything that’s happened to us in the past few weeks. Plus, they might have been trying to turn our friend into a WMD, so I’m not much in the mood to show them mercy.”

Dick looked around to the rest of the Remnantians. The looks on their faces told him that they fundamentally agreed with Yang’s assessment of their situation. It wasn’t hard to understand why, given how they were trained and the experiences that led up to this moment. Seeing his and the other Titan’s apprehension, Ruby’s expression softened.

“Yang, we’re not killers. We’re better than that, and we’ll use rubber bullets on them,” she declared. Yang looked at her for a moment, then sighed.

“Fine, but if something happens, I’m not losing any sleep over it.”

Dick nodded at this answer then went back to work. Just as he could understand their reasons why they might consider using lethal force, he’d understand them choosing to employ it. It was their decision to make, and although he himself didn’t intend to kill any of the cultists, even after everything they’d done, he wouldn’t force that on everyone else.

“Victor, how are we looking?” Weiss asked as she carefully refilled Myrtenaster with vials of fuel. There was a silvery powder in one of the vials, Nth metal if Dick remembered correctly. She had been practicing utilizing the substance with her Semblance during her off-hours, and he was curious to see how it might perform on the field.

“Decryption’s still five hours out. You wouldn’t think that so much information would be inside a tiny data pad, and you’d be right. Apparently, Gizmo’s little gadget allowed us to tap into the smuggler’s entire network.”

“So _that’s_ why it was taking so long!” Nora exclaimed as she carefully tinkered with a few grenades, the distance between herself and the rest of the heroes much more pronounced and noticeable. The hard light barrier Cyborg had erected around her also helped to ease everyone’s concerns about the grenadier.

“Yep,” Victor replied. “Also, just got word from Donna. She’s on her way right now. ETA’s about three hours. A little miffed at what Blood’s done, and I swear I heard her sharpening her sword over the phone.”

“What about the evacuation?” Jaune asked, and Victor nodded.

“Going well. North and west-sides of the cathedral have been evacuated, and south and east portions should be ready in a few hours.”

“I want us on site before the evacuation is over,” Dick commanded, his reasons for wanting to go unsaid but no less understood. “What about Blood?”

At this, Victor frowned. “Hard to say. Guy’s beefed up his security, but from what I can see, he and his entire church are held up in that cathedral. That worries me. Either our plan worked perfectly…”

“Or he knows exactly what we’re doing, and he’s preparing for a fight,” M’gann finished. Victor nodded at her assessment, and the White Martian frowned. She then looked at Dick, who himself was frowning in thought. He quickly came to a decision.

“We can’t risk it,” he said. “Everyone, as soon as you’re ready, we’re heading out. Gar, go get Raven, please.”

“On it, dude,” Garfield replied as he walked out of the room and up the stairs. The voices and sounds of his friends disappeared behind him, and the corridors he quickly found himself walking through were silent. He couldn’t help but allow his thoughts to ruminate.

They were taking a big risk, practicing restraint like they were. It felt as though both sides of this entire conflict were planning around the other’s plans multiple times, at the same time. Like a giant game of chess, with the city itself as the board. Garfield knew they’d win, as they always did, but he still felt that if Blood’s plans came to fruition, the results would be disastrous.

‘ _He’s not going to win,_ ’ he thought as he reached his destination: Raven’s room. It was marked by a stylized dark purple raven, its wings tucked in on itself. The expression fit Raven’s demeanor almost perfectly. She was so focused on keeping herself contained, practicing discipline. Garfield couldn’t help but think that part of Dick’s desire to show restraint was to help keep Raven’s emotions in check. Give her time to decompress.

“RaeRae, it’s me,” Garfield announced as he gently knocked on the door. He waited for a response, only for the door to open automatically. He saw Raven’s room was dark, lit only by a few scattered candles. Books and tomes were neatly stacked across wooden desks and bookcases, and the room had enough gothic imagery to fill a Hot Topic.

At the very least, he could take solace that her room remained intact. The only thing he couldn’t find was Raven herself. She was nowhere to be seen, and for a moment he was alarmed until he saw a small, handheld mirror resting on a pillow. He recognized that object instantly, and he liked to think it was the start of him and Raven becoming friends.

“Now, should I stay, or should I go?” he wondered, tapping his finger across his chin. Garfield looked back into the hall, pondering his options. On the one hand, Raven wouldn’t necessarily appreciate him using the mirror to go into her mind once again – as she’d made abundantly clear after the first and only time – yet time was of the essence. He decided to make a compromise, walked over to it, and sat down on her bed.

“Rae, it’s me again,” Garfield called out. “I know you’re meditating and all, but—”

A swirl of magical energy, reaching out from the mirror, interrupted him. Before he could even shriek, the magic pulled him inside. A dark, swirling mass enveloped him, and the next thing he knew he was inside a strange yet familiar landscape. The sky was a deep, dark purple, with black clouds chasing across the void. There were no plants, nor any signs of life at all, yet at the same time it felt peaceful and serene. He looked at the structure he found himself in, and found it was an open-air temple complex, white pillars forming a circle on top of a floating mass of rock. The center of the temple was a white spiral of stone, raising up from the outer end into a floating ring a few feet above him.

Rather than simply flying up, Garfield calmly walked up the floating staircase, where he found Raven floating in the very center, deep in her mediation. Around her were eight different colored copies of Raven, each one representing a different emotion – Emoticlones, as he and Cy liked to call them. Admittedly, the green-skinned boy couldn’t quite wrap his head around why Raven’s head was a living Pixar movie, or if everyone’s personality could be split apart like this, but he wasn’t going to question it further.

“Rae, sorry for barging in,” Beast Boy called out quietly. “It…kinda pulled me in.”

“… I know,” Raven replied, still meditation. “I’m the one who pulled you in.”

“Oh… Thank you?” Garfield was unsure, and the pink Emoticlone giggled at his response. The real Raven ceased her meditation, righting herself and standing up on two legs. One by one, the rest of the Emoticlones blinked away, back to their separate domains. Pink and Purple regarded him the most fondly, while Red was tellingly restrained even as she disappeared.

“You can relax,” Raven told him, and Garfield let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding.

“Phew, that’s good to hear. You know, cuz last time I was here…things didn’t go well.”

“It wasn’t all bad,” Raven admitted with a shrug. “You and I became friends because of it.”

“… True,” he replied, then both teenagers smiled. After a moment, Beast Boy snapped back to reality. “Oh, yeah! Nightwing wanted me to get you. We’re pushing up our timetable. Blood might be expecting us, and he wants to reduce the risk.”

Before Raven even said anything, he could see – no, _feel_ how she thought about the news. The calm purple gave way to a roaring tempest. Strong winds threatened to rip him from the ground, but almost as soon as it appeared it was gone. Again, she was restraining herself, and Beast Boy hated the fact that Raven had to do this at every waking moment of her life.

“I see,” Raven calmly said. “Then I guess we should get going.” She prepared to open a portal, but Garfield stopped her with an outstretched hand resting on her shoulder.

“Raven, wait,” he began, and Raven stopped herself. “Are you alright, really?”

“I’m fine, Garfield,” Raven insisted, but he kept his hand on her shoulder.

“You don’t have to play strong to me, Rae,” he declared, and both teenagers stared into the other’s eyes. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Raven sighed and sat back down.

“I hate this,” Raven declared, hunched over. Beast Boy sat down next to her and allowed her to continue. “Every minute, every second of every day in my life I have to keep myself bottled up, fearing that if I lose control for an instant, the people I love would pay the price.”

“Raven,” Garfield quietly began, “you don’t have to bottle yourself up on our account. We’re your friends, and no matter what, we’re here for you.”

“That’s the thing, though. I do know that, fundamentally. But at the same time, the fear just keeps…creeping in, clawing at me. Especially now. Everything that Blood has done lately – the crime wave, the Grimm, Mumbo, all of that was for me. He’s trying to make me lose control, I know it.”

“Then don’t let him,” Garfield suggested. “I said it once and I’ll say it again: you are the strongest person I know, Raven. Anyone else in your position could have simply hidden away or run. Instead, you not only stood against your father, on multiple occasions, you’ve actively worked to ensure nothing he does can get to you. You took those powers, ones you once described to me as being evil, and turned them into forces of good. I can’t even count how many people you’ve saved. So, don’t count yourself out, Raven. You have _always_ been stronger than you think.”

Raven looked at him for a long pause. Then, she smiled, and the world around them grew just a bit brighter.

“Thank you, Garfield. I needed that,” she admitted as she rose to her feet, helping Garfield up to his. “You know, I think M’gann’s rubbing off on you a bit.”

“Don’t tell her that,” he chuckled as Raven prepared to teleport them away. “You didn’t hear it from me, but she has a bit of an ego.”

Raven laughed at the joke, the world becoming even brighter as they finally teleported back to her room. Calming herself, Raven carefully placed the mirror inside the nightstand’s drawer, then turned to face her friend once again. The two looked at each other, wondering what to say next.

“Garfield, I…” she began, emotions swirling inside of her. Garfield looked at her with his ever present, cheerful expression. She moved to speak, only for her senses to _scream_ at her. Garfield noticed this change in her and moved to ask what was wrong.

He never got the chance as Raven suddenly encased the both of them in a protective sphere of magic, and then everything exploded into a white ball of light.

* * *

 

The world was spinning. A loud, incessant ringing bounced around Ruby’s ears, and she was confused. What had happened? One moment, she was finishing putting together Crescent Rose. The next, she was flying, propelled by an unseen force that was accompanied by a loud bang and a flash of heat. She opened her eyes and groaned, taking in her surroundings.

Titans Tower was now in ruins. Multiple large holes were torn through the walls, fire and smoke billowing out from broken windows. It was a miracle the building was still standing, which Ruby chalked up to Cyborg’s exceptional engineering skills. Her friends were groaning, Starfire protectively covering Nightwing’s body with her own as the rest tried to recover themselves. Ruby tried to stand up, only to sway and fall back down.

‘ _Definitely a concussion,_ ’ she thought as she looked around for her weapon. It had landed a few feet from her, and as she made her way towards it, she saw a trio of armored men and women enter the Tower from the blasted holes. They were wearing blood-red makeshift armor, not professional looking in the slightest yet having an intimidating appearance.

They were also holding large rifles, telling Ruby everything she needed to know about who they were. With a burst of her Semblance, Ruby grabbed Crescent Rose and quickly fired it at the first man she saw, hitting his head and causing him to collapse to the floor while forcing the others into cover. Her friends, startled by the sudden sound, shot up as quickly as they could. A few staggered from the sudden change in position, a testament to their wounds, but they just as quickly recovered.

“How are they still alive?!” one of the men shouted as he broke cover, aiming his rifle at Yang’s back, but suddenly another shot rang out. A rubber bullet slammed into the man’s helmet, knocking his head back and causing him to clutch it in pain. Yang shot around, her eyes turning red as she charged towards the gunman, gripping him by the throat and hefting him upwards with one arm. She punched the man in the stomach, causing him to double over, and as a woman raised her gun at Yang she turned and threw her captive at the woman. The two collapsed in a heap, but before they could even attempt to pick themselves up, a large Glyph was formed underneath them. They were then encased in ice, immobilized them and allowing the heroes to finally take a moment to catch their breath.

“What the hell happened?!” Jaune asked as he tore Crocea Mors out from underneath a chunk of concrete.

“Did Blood attack us?!” Blake asked, moving to take cover alongside the hole. Peeking out, she got her answer as scores of men and women raced down the bridge towards Titans Tower, carried in armored personnel carriers and repurposed helicopters. A few more were coming over in small boats, and each were heavily armed. “Where did they get all of this?!”

“They must have been planning for this longer than we thought!” Nightwing surmised as Starfire helped him to his feet. Seeing the size of the small army, he cursed. “Dammit, I should have seen this coming!”

“No time for regrets now,” Yang countered as she found Ember Celica and strapped them on. The others were doing the same for their weapons, and she took a moment to look around.

“Where’s Raven and Beast Boy?” she asked, not seeing the two among them. Nightwing then looked up towards Raven’s room and again cursed.

“I sent Beast Boy to get Raven!” he declared, preparing to run up the stairs, but M’gann stopped him.

“I’ll go,” she said. “Keep them busy!”

“You got it, Miss Martian,” Nora saluted as M’gann turned intangible and phased through the ceiling. The heroes then refocused themselves and looked out across the small island their home resided in, and collectively frowned.

“Today was supposed to be a relaxing day,” Ruby surmised, loading a round into her gun.

“Yep,” Nora agreed as she hefted her hammer up high. As the heroes readied themselves, Nightwing snarled and thrust his arm forwards.

“Titans, go!”

* * *

 

Beast Boy pushed himself off the ground with a deep groan. The room he was in was presently on fire, spreading from a hole in the outside wall. He could hear gunshots and sirens coming in, and a quick look outside showed a veritable army of mercenaries assaulting not only Titans Tower, but also the immediate city on the other side of the connecting bridge. From his intercom, still miraculously working, he could hear policing frantically calling for reinforcements as the armed men assaulted them.

Jump City had turned into a warzone, and all Beast Boy could ask himself was just how in the world did this happen? How did they miss all these men and women? They didn’t just pop up overnight.

Another groan from beside him broke Beast Boy out his thoughts, and he turned to see a barely conscious Raven lying on the ground. He immediately went to her, carefully trying to rouse her.

“Rae, come on! Get up, we gotta move!” he said, quickly glancing behind him. He began to hear his friends repelling the assault, relieving him somewhat, but until the criminals were fully pushed back from the island, he wouldn’t allow himself to feel a sense of relief.

Although, Raven finally coming to did cause that sense to flood through him.

“Wha…what happened?” she asked as Beast Boy helped her to her feet. Together, the two of them walked to the hole in Raven’s room, where they watched out over the battle below. Their friends, the Titans and teams RWBY and JNPR had emerged from the bottom floor of Titans Tower, directly engaging with the criminals and their assault weaponry. Upon seeing the red-armored uniforms of the enemy forces, Raven snarled.

“Blood…”

“Yeah, I figured,” Beast Boy concurred. “Come on, we gotta get down there.”

Raven nodded, dark energy beginning to swirl around them, only for yet another explosion to ripple behind them. Turning around, the two ran out of Raven’s room and into the hallway, where they saw a group of armed men had broken in from the upper floors and were attempting to encircle the Titans. Seeing them, the men shouted and opened fire, but Raven immediately erected a shield between both groups. The bullets bounced harmlessly off the arcane energy, and Raven began steadily walking forward. The cultists continued to fire, even as the wall grew closer and closer. Their continued calm demeanor unnerved Raven greatly, but once the two of them got close enough, she and Beast Boy struck.

Turning himself into a gorilla, Beast Boy pounded one of the gunmen into the ground. Hoisting him up by his leg, he slammed him repeatedly in the walls beside him before tossing him away in a crumpled heap. Two other cultists attempted to fire at him, but Raven snatched their weapons away and broke them in half. Enraged, she wrapped tendrils of magic around their bodies, hoisting them high into the air, then slammed both against each other repeatedly. The last man hefted his shotgun, only for him to suddenly spasm as a green hand was thrust through his back and out his chest. M’gann phased back into reality behind him, a calm rage filling her face as she leaned in close to the man.

“Big mistake,” she warned as the man went still, falling into unconsciousness. With the immediate area secure, the three Titans converged on one-another, M’gann carefully inspecting both for any injuries.

“Sis, I’m fine. Really,” Beast Boy insisted. “You should be checking Raven; she took most of the blast.”

“I can do both at the same time, you know that,” M’gann insisted. Finding that neither of them had major injuries, just a few cuts and bruises, she relaxed away from them.

“What’s the situation?” Raven asked, and M’gann frowned.

“Not good. We’ve got cultists staging simultaneous attacks all over the city, attacking key choke points and spreading the police thin. We’ve got over a hundred men attacking Titans Tower itself, supported by makeshift gunships, APCs, and gunboats.”

“How the hell did we miss this?!” Beast Boy shouted.

“I want to know how they got past our defenses?” Raven more pointedly asked, but M’gann shook her head.

“We shut them off to allow trick-or-treaters to the island. We didn’t anticipate someone actually attacking us, and the damage sustained to the tower is preventing us from turning them back on.”

“Of course, he’d be the type of guy to take advantage of families wanting to fun,” Beast Boy groaned with a deep frown, which Raven and M’gann echoed.

“Yeah, but right now that doesn’t matter,” M’gann insisted. “What does matter is kicking these guys out of our home. _Then_ we can kick Blood’s shit in for ruining Halloween for everyone.”

Raven and Beast Boy looked at each other for a moment then back at M’gann. They nodded, but before they could move to join the battle, a helicopter rose up from beside the Tower. Its side door was open, and to their horror a minigun was being aimed right at them, already spinning. M’gann turned intangible as Beast Boy and Raven dove for cover, the heavy caliber bullets tearing into the structure. Fragments of wood, metal, and concrete sprayed out across the room, but M’gann remained unaffected as she flew through the hail of fire and tackled the gunner. Turning tangible once again, she punched the man in the head a few times and kicked the other right out of the aircraft. He screamed as he plunged into the water below, but she paid him no heed as she turned to attack the pilot. He reached for a pistol and fired it at her, but the bullet bounced harmlessly off her green skin, and she regarded him with an unamused look.

“Really?” she asked him. He didn’t get the chance to answer as she socked him across the jaw, knocking him unconscious and causing the helicopter to begin to spiral out of control. Grabbing the unconscious criminals, she flew out of the aircraft and rejoined her younger brother and Raven. To her surprise, she saw more gunmen had rappelled up to them, firing their guns from all angles.

Much to her satisfaction, they weren’t having much luck. Raven had surrounded herself with orbs of magic, deflecting the bullets away from her and, by extension, Beast Boy. Garfield himself was turning into a multitude of animals, one after another, to both evade gunfire and attack. One moment, he was a mouse, scurrying across the floor. The next, he was a lion, pinning a man to the floor and swiping at another with his claws.

When a group of cultists attempt to fire their rifles at him, M’gann flew forth and dragged them with her into the wall. She phased herself through while they were slammed at full force, bouncing off and crumpling to the floor. M’gann flew back out and uppercutted a man, dragging another into the ceiling along with her.

Beast Boy turned towards another group of cultists, turning himself into a crocodile and charging towards them. Their bullets did nothing to his leathery hide as he turned around and swiped them into a wall with his tail. One was able to jump over it and tried to fire again, only for Beast Boy to turn back and clasp him into his jaws. He thrashed about, careful to keep the man relatively unharmed, then threw him into the wall.

Raven, meanwhile, wrapped one criminal in a tendril and whipped him about the room repeatedly. Several were hit as well, and when the whipped man was fully she unconscious the threw him into another. The last group of cultists attempted to fire their weapons at Raven, but she threw a swath of magic into them. They shrieked in pain as the magic coursed through their bodies, and then they fell the floor unconscious. The Titans looked around, trying to see if any more cultists were about, but found none.

“We good?” Beast Boy asked, and Raven nodded. The three prepared to rush down and rejoin their compatriots, but flickering lights stopped them cold. Slowly and apprehensively, they turned to face a suddenly darkened hallway, the light being sucked into a small orb held out in a man’s hand. His head was looking down, and they only managed to get a glimpse of his face when he looked up to regard them with a wicked smile.

“Raven. It’s so good to see you again,” the man said as he drew the light into himself, his costume lighting up with the photonic energy.

“Doctor Light…” Raven mused, her cloak billowing in the wind as dark energy enveloped her hands.

“Dude, where have you been? You’ve been missing for six months!” Beast Boy exclaimed. The man had previously gone straight, only to suddenly drop off the face of the Earth half a year prior. To see him here and now, clad in this old costume, was certainly a shock to the teen hero, who had genuinely thought he’d managed to reform himself. Rather than respond, he laughed. Beast Boy and Raven looked at each other, only for M’gann to suddenly recoil in shock.

“What did they do to you?” she asked, her voice filled with horror. Doctor Light smiled and raised his hand upwards.

“Brother Blood and his church showed me the light.”

Then, without saying another word, he attacked.

* * *

 

Ruby dived as yet another rocket flew over her, striking a piece of rubble behind her. The Battle for Titans Tower, as she had begun to dub it, had been going on for nearly thirty minutes at this point. The scores of heavily armed cultists just never seemed to end. She’d take down one with a well-placed shot or strike, nonlethal of course, and two more would take their place. Like a hydra, spread over the entire small island.

And armed with a lot of guns, and vehicles, and other things that made Ruby slightly rethink her analogy.

“Gaagh!” Ruby grunted as she fell to her back, a rocket exploding in front of her. A cloud of dirt and rubble shot up into the air, falling back down and forcing Ruby to cover her face in an attempt to shield her eyes. As bits of rock and concrete bounced off her Aura-protected flesh, Ruby heard a heavy shuffle of boots. Immediately she burst away with her Semblance, Crescent Rose trained onto the armored soldier. He was surprised at her sudden movement, and before he even had a chance to fire his weapon, Ruby fired hers. The rubber bullet slammed into his chest, slightly cracking the armored plate, and sending him back onto the ground with the air thrown from his lungs. Ruby chambered another round as she ran up and smacked him across his head with the blunt end of her scythe, then took stock of the surrounding area.

The battle was fully raging, even now. Men and women wearing blood red armor aimed their powerful guns at her friends, carefully trying to maintain a distance from them. They must have figured that distance gave them the edge, but the fact that teams RWBY and JNPR were firing back were apparently throwing them for a loop. Ruby figured it must be since most heroes on Earth simply don’t use guns. The only people she’d met so far who did were Red Hood and Vigilante.

Still, it was too bad for the criminals that none of the heroes were content to let them remain behind cover for very long. Yang, shouting at the top of her lungs, rocketed towards an emplacement, using her gauntlets to shield herself from small arms fire. When she got close enough, she leapt high into the air, the hail of bullets following her, then she threw herself down as hard as she could. She punched the ground with enough force to create a cascading wave from the rubble, sending the criminals flying upwards. As they flailed, Blake jumped in and wrapped them with her ribbon. She then spun them like a massive flail, slamming the captives into another group of gunmen and knocking both groups away like ragdolls.

“Nice job, Nightshade,” Yang joked as she fired off a few shotgun rounds at the enemy.

“You, too, Golden Dragon,” Blake responded as she fired Gambol Shroud at the same time. Both girls, their backs against each other, fought on as the enemy encircled them. Yang would take the damage head on, letting her Semblance slowly charge, while Blake was dancing between her shadow clones that caused the bullets, rockets, and grenades to shoot well past her. Each dodge was punctuated by a shot from Gambol Shroud, the nine-millimeter rounds boosted by an electrical implant embedded into each round. As more men spasmed from the electricity, falling the ground in a heap, Blake couldn’t help but smile to herself.

‘ _Gonna have to thank Ruby for finishing those,_ ’ she thought as she dodged a sniper shot. Blake turned to fire back, only to hear the crack of Crescent Rose firing. A moment later, she saw the sniper fall out of a rapidly escaping helicopter, and Blake flashed a thumbs up towards her leader.

“You’re welcome!” Ruby called out as she dodged a sudden charge from a group of cultists. They tried to hit her with the butts of their rifles, but Ruby riposted, using the hook of her scythe to rip the guns from their hands and throw them to the side. For a moment, they were confused, but soon recollected themselves and pulled out knives of their own. They swiped at her, trying to get past her Aura, but Ruby was too fast and nimble. She bobbed and weaved, countering each attack with one of her own, and before long the four men laid sprawled at her feet. She didn’t allow herself time to bask in her victory, however, as a helicopter containing a gunner flew towards her.

Ruby ran as the minigun began to fire, a trail of bullets following her rose petals. The hail suddenly stopped, however, as a rain of starbolts stuck the aircraft from above. Ruby looked to see Starfire, her eyes blazing green, continuing to fire her energy blasts at the enemy, shouting a wordless scream full of indignant rage. As for the crashing helicopter, Ruby saw the men hastily jump out, landing in the water, but paid them no further heed.

“Reaper, watch out!” Nightwing shouted as he threw a wing-ding at a cultist taking position behind her. Ruby spun around just as the thrown projectile bounced off the man’s head, knocking him back and leaving him helpless to Nightwing’s quick vaulting over to him. The vigilante then threw multiple jabs into the man’s face, only stopping once he slipped into unconsciousness. Nightwing turned to face Ruby, and it was then that the Red Reaper took note of the sheen of blood running down his face and onto his shoulders.

“Oh my god, you’re bleeding!” she exclaimed as she quickly tried to tend to it, but Nightwing stopped her.

“I’m fine, trust me,” he told her as he pulled out a compress and attached it against his headwound. With the bleeding stemmed, Nightwing took cover behind a chunk of concrete. He turned to face the heavily damaged Titans Tower and scowled. “Damn, Cy’s going to be _pissed_.”

“I think he already is,” Ruby noted as she finally saw Cyborg. The man was in a full state of rage, charging after several groups of criminals with his sonic cannons firing at full blast. Several of them were running away, but Cyborg refused to let them get far.

“HOW DARE YOU BREAK MY HOME?!!” he shouted, his voice loud enough to carry over the sound of intense battle. Ruby couldn’t help but feel amused, only to refocus herself on Nightwing. True to his word, the bleeding had been stemmed, but the fact remained that he was still seriously hurt. His uniform was torn in places, exposing the soft flesh underneath. Cuts and bruises crossed his body, from what little she could see, and Ruby wouldn’t be surprised if the rest of his body was in a similar state. He was also breathing heavily while clutching his chest, likely denoting a broken rib.

It really went to show the young Huntress just how vulnerable most of the people here were, and yet the sight of Nightwing continuing the fight inspired her in turn. She supposed that was one of the reasons why he, the only non-superpowered individual of the Titans, remained their leader.

When another group of criminals reared their heads, Ruby and Nightwing reacted almost instantly. Nightwing threw a wing-ding at them, which managed to curve and knock their weapons from their hands before returning to his own. Meanwhile Ruby, firing her sniper rifle in quick succession, managed to knock all of them down before they even had a chance to dive for cover.

“Nice,” Nightwing complimented her, and Ruby smiled.

“Thank you!” she replied before the two of them broke cover and ran towards the next group of cultists.

On the other side of the island, team JNPR and Weiss contended with the other half of the invading force. Rather than attacking from the ground and air like with their comrades, this group appeared content to strafe them from the water while soldiers attacked up close. The heroes didn’t care, instead they remained focused on the task at hand.

“Lightning, take out the boats!” Jaune ordered. Nora saluted before firing several grenades at passing boats. Most swerved away, but one was unfortunate enough to be caught in the grenade’s explosion. Rather than an explosion of fire and concussive force, however, an electromagnetic pulse forcibly shut down the watercraft. Its engine died and, moving off inertia, it crashed upon the beach. The driver and copilot hopped out, pulling out their pistols while the gunner turned her heavy machine gun towards them. For a moment, Jaune hoped the EMP would have affected the gun as well, only for it to reveal itself as being an analog controlled weapon and thus completely unaffected.

Jaune hastily raised his shield to protect himself, only for a large Glyph to erect in front of him and form a wall. The bullets bounced off the silvery-gray Glyph, and Jaune turned to smile at Weiss.

“Thanks, Ivory,” he said. Weiss, visibly straining under the effort of combining Nth Metal with her Semblance, nodded.

“Take out that gun,” she grunted through heavy breaths. “I don’t know how long I can hold this up.”

Jaune nodded and turned to face the gunner. She was still firing the fifty-caliber towards them, each bullet pinging off the Nth Metal-infused Glyph, but Jaune steeled himself. Raising his shield in front of him, he charged through the Glyph in full sprint. The gunner immediately turned her attention towards the charging Huntsman, firing her weapon at Crocea Mors’ shield half. The bullets ricocheted off the titanium-alloy frame, its structural integrity boosted by Jaune’s considerable Aura reserves, but he could feel each impact regardless.

As he drew closer and closer, the gunner began to panic. She was starting to scream, but Jaune paid her no heed as he leapt onto the boat, slamming his shield into her. She flew back into the bay, water splashing wildly. The air was knocked out of her lungs, but before she could recover, Jaune hoisted her out of the water and back onto the boat, then slammed his shield into her head, knocking her out.

“Good job, fearless leader!” Nora shouted as she fired yet more grenades at the invaders, a mixture of EMP and concussion. One gunman, wielding a rocket launcher, fired towards Nora, hoping his heavy ordinance would finish her off. Nora, with a manic smile on her face, shifted Magnhild into its hammer configuration and quickly batted it to the side. Both sides watched as it careened wide into the air, just as helicopter flew past as it tried to flee from Starfire. The rocket struck its tail, causing it to swerve out of control and crash into the water.

“YEAH!” Nora cheered, thrusting her hammer upwards in celebration as the initial attacker sheepishly tossed his weapon to the side and Starfire rescued the downed pilots. His compatriots were giving him the stink eye even as they continued their assault, but Jaune’s friends refused to give up ground. Ren, running around the perimeter, fired Stormflower into their ranks. A cultist attempted to get close, only for Ren to shift gears and engage him in a quick melee. He sliced apart his rifle, cutting off the straps of his armor at the same time, then kicked himself into the man’s chest. Staggered, the cultist was helpless as Ren quickly kicked himself off the man, knocking him back while Ren backflipped into the air, firing his weapons at yet more enemies to his side.

‘ _He’s clearly got a handle of things,_ ’ Jaune noted as he searched for his partner, slicing his sword at a cultist who got too close. He quickly found her, and as he expected, she was right in the middle of the fray. Here was in her element, expertly bobbing and weaving between overlapping fields of fire, Akoúo̱ orbiting her to block bullets while she stuck with Miló. Occasionally she’d turn Miló into its semi-automatic rifle configuration and fire rubber bullets into the horde before her, each shot striking against the head or chest without fail. As one would go down, she’d shift targets to another, only to just as quickly turn her weapon back into a sword and strike a man down.

Jaune, running through the field, joined with his partner after leaving a trail of fallen and groaning cultists in his wake.

“White Knight,” Pyrrha welcomed him as she turned Miló into a spear and pinned a man to the beach, throwing Akoúo̱ like a discus into several heads at the same time.

“Crimson Guardian,” Jaune replied as he violently kicked a man in the chest back several feet, the man’s body bowling over several others. Ahead of him, he saw Weiss dancing between enemies of her own, immobilizing them with Freeze Gas or scattering them with Firefly Gel. With pointed stabs and strikes, she continued to knock her opponents down, then formed a series of Glyphs beneath her. The trail extended far down the beach, and soon she was racing down them with increasing speed, knocking men and women high into the air. When she stopped, she twirled around and shifted Myrtenaster to Freeze Gas, forming a Glyph underneath all of them, then stabbed down. As she did, ice jettisoned out of the Glyph, entrapping all the criminals at the same time, then she collapsed to her knees from the strain. One of the last remaining boats attempted to seize upon the opportunity, only for Starfire to suddenly swoop in, lift the boat out of the water, then hurl it far out into the sea.

Jaune took a moment to look around, scanning for any more attackers, and to his relief, found none.

“I think we’re good,” he mentioned as he and his team ran over to check on Weiss. Starfire was already there, helping the former heiress to her feet.

“I’m fine, thank you,” she mentioned, still swaying slightly. Jaune, cursing the fact that he wasn’t able to put his helmet on in time, pulled out his scroll to check her Aura levels, finding them to be in the yellow.

“That really wore you out, huh?” he mentioned as he pocketed the device.

“Yes, it’s still hard for me to combine my Semblance with non-Dust materials.”

“You are getting much better, though!” Starfire noted jubilantly, and Weiss couldn’t help but smile at her infectious energy.

“ _Ivory Mage, are you okay?_ ” Weiss heard Ruby’s voice emit out of her earbud. Pressing her finger to her ear, Weiss began to reply.

“We’re fine. Everything’s clear on our end. What about you?” she asked.

“ _Same here. Nightwing’s a little banged up, but he insists he’s fine._ ”

Starfire frowned at this news, clenching her fists in anger at the same time, but remained silent. Then, her expression changed, going from righteous anger to worry.

“Nightwing, are friends Beast Boy, Raven, and Miss Martian with you?” she suddenly asked, and the others around her gave their full attention.

“ _I thought they were with you?_ ” Nightwing replied, worry seeping into his voice as well. Slowly, the heroes turned to face Titans Tower, just as a large explosion rippled out from the top floor.

* * *

 

Raven grunted as the beam of light struck against her barrier, gritting her teeth as Doctor Light’s assault continued. A manic smile was spread wide across his face, and he didn’t seem to regard the fact that he was facing off against three veteran Titans at one time with much apprehension. In fact, he seemed elated.

“Do you know what kept me going after all this time?!” he yelled out as M’gann flew towards him, only for a bubble of light to form around him and repel her violently. “Each and every day, torture after torture, revelation after revelation! What kept me going was what I would do to all of _you_!”

“You’re sick, Arthur!” Beast Boy insisted, turning himself into a mouse to avoid a beam of light. “You need help!”

“What I _need_ is to kill you!” Doctor Light responded, sucking in the ambient light from the building’s dwindling fixtures. Before he could strike once again, Raven threw swaths of dark magic towards him. He swatted them aside with beams of light then retaliated, sending a horizontal beam that knocked Raven back.

“Oof!” she grunted as she bounced off a wall. Rising to her feet, she couldn’t help but note the familiar feeling the attack sent coursing through her. “That was my father…”

“You recognized that, didn’t you?” Doctor Light replied. “Brother Blood provided many gifts in return for submission.”

“He’s using you!” M’gann shouting, trying to get him to see reason. “They both are! Please, let us help you!”

“Where was that help when I needed you most?!” Doctor Light suddenly shouted as he shot M’gann with a wide beam. She turned intangible, only for her to still recoil away thanks to Trigon’s influence on Light’s abilities. “I _know_ they’re using me, but better to be a tool than a victim!”

The light around the supervillain’s body increased before emitting a powerful pulse, sending the three heroes back and igniting a gas line inside Titans Tower. A large, powerful explosion shot out of the front of the building, and Beast Boy heard M’gann scream as she was engulfed in flames. A moment later, a white form flung herself out of the tower, desperate to try and escape, and crashed into the water below.

“M’GANN!” Beast Boy shouted as he looked out over to the ripples in the water where she had landed. He could see the other heroes below, looking up at the Tower in worry as Yang, the closest to where M’gann had crashed, dove into the water to fish her out.

“Beast Boy, look out!” Raven shouted as she pushed him out of the way from Light’s attack. Beast Boy fell to the floor with a huff and propped himself off his knees, only for his eyes to widen as he took note of a collection of floating orbs hanging above them.

“Ah, crap,” he muttered as Doctor Light, with a mad grin, threw them all down. Scurrying away, Beast Boy flailed around as he attempted to dodge. He succeeded as many times as he failed, each impact hitting him like a rock, only for Raven to quickly encase them in a bubble.

“He’s completely lost it,” she noted as she struggled to keep the shield up, visibly buckling after each impact. She could hear her friends racing up the tower, trying to get to them as Doctor Light dealt with them in turn.

“Yeah, I noticed,” Beast Boy replied with a wince. “How do we stop him?”

“If we subdue him, I can remove my father and Blood’s influence from his mind like we did for Jinx.”

“Do we have time for that?”

“We’ll make time!” Raven grunted as her shield began to crack. “I can’t hold it for much longer. You ready?”

Beast Boy nodded and patted her shoulder, then braced himself. Raven breathed in and out, steadying her mind and clearing her thoughts, before yelling a wordless scream. Her shield shattered like glass, sending shards flying out in all directions and breaking apart most of the remaining orbs. Beast Boy, turning himself into a tiger, lunged at Doctor Light at the same time, bounding from side to side in an effort to dodge the remaining orbs of light. He managed to make it through relatively unscathed, pinning the man to the floor after shattering the remains of a table during their descent.

“Mangy beast!” Doctor Light shouted as he tried to pry the green tiger off. Beast Boy refused to relent, grabbing Doctor Light’s arm with his mouth while pushing the other down with this paws. With the villain completely pinned, Raven rushed over and knelt behind his head.

“Hold him still!” she shouted as she placed her hands to the sides of Doctor Light’s head. Wisps of magic were emitted from Raven’s hands, spreading into Doctor Light’s head and causing dark purple veins to spread across his skin.

“AAHH!” Doctor Light screamed as he thrashed from side to side, intense pain coursing through him.

‘ _I’m sorry, dude!_ _It’s for your own good!_ ’ Beast Boy thought as he continued to pin the supervillain to the ground. At the same time, he couldn’t help but note the presence of dark veins spreading across Raven’s face in turn. She seemed to notice his sudden concern and shook her head at him.

“I have no other place to put it! I’ll dispel it later!” she shouted as she continued to remove Trigon’s corruption. Doctor Light’s thrashing, meanwhile, grew more and more prevalent as his attempts to keep the other Titans at bay subsided.

“STOP! STOP! IT HURTS!” he shouted while continuing to thrash about in utter agony, and both Titans felt shame and pity course through their bodies at his state.

“ _Raven, we’re coming!_ ” Starfire’s voice screeched into the microphone. From the distance, they could see the Tamaranean racing towards them, and Raven allowed herself to smile.

“GET! AWAY! FROM ME!” Doctor Light suddenly shrieked as his body glowed with increasing intensity. Surprised, Raven could do nothing but close her eyes as Doctor Light’s body shone ever brighter. His body shimmered, then a large pulse erupted out of him, throwing both Titans off to the side. They crashed into opposite walls, collapsing into a heap, but Light’s body continued to pulsate. He screamed in agony, a dark aura enveloping his head, before he turned to face Raven.

“ _Just die!_ ” Doctor Light shouted, a dark voice echoing behind his own as he attacked with a wave of light. Starfire screamed as the attack sent her flying back while Raven immediately responded with her own wave of magical energy. The two waves collided with each other in the center of the room, sparks of energy cascading from the collision and causing the roof and floor to crack.

“Ah, come on!” Raven heard Cyborg wail as the crack spread throughout Titans Tower, but she paid him no heed. Instead, she poured more of her focus into stopping Doctor Light, pushing his light further and further back. Grunting, the supervillain attempted to force her back, only for Raven to snarl and increase her efforts. As the magic prepared to overwhelm him, Raven began to step forward, each step intensifying the pressure on him. Finally, once she face to face, Doctor Light’s efforts broke and his light ceased. He was flung back, striking the wall with a dull thud, then fell to the ground.

Raven stared at him for a long pause, breathing heavily while prepared to strike at a moment’s notice. When Doctor Light didn’t move a muscle, she relaxed and stood up straight. A groan then caught her attention, and she spun to see Beast Boy laying across the remains of the sofa.

“Garfield!” Raven shouted as she raced towards him. He groaned as she helped him up to his feet.

“Uggh, what hit me?” he mumbled while clutching his head, a thin trail of blood running down its side.

“A crazed supervillain,” Raven responded dryly.

“Is it Tuesday again? I honestly lost track,” Beast Boy quipped as he rose to his feet. Raven smiled along with him, and they heard the sound of the automatic door being pried open by their friends’ strength. The half-demon prepared to turn around and finish Doctor Light’s purge, only for Beast Boy’s eyes to widen.

It happened so fast she was unable to blink nor comprehend the pinging sound as a suddenly recovered Doctor Light shot a thin beam straight towards her heart. Beast Boy, acting on pure instinct, pushed her out of the way, losing his balance as he did so and falling straight into the beam’s path. He felt a sharp, piercing pain as the photons shot through his chest and out of his back. Raven watched in disbelief as Beast Boy’s hands clutched at his wound, dark red blood seeping out of it just as the rest of the Titans sans Ruby and Yang ran out onto the floor. He stumbled back to the edge of the Tower, the others stunned into silence as they were too shocked to do anything, and he fell. Raven watched as Garfield’s limp body crashed against the rocks, bouncing up a bit before landing in a heap.

He didn’t get up. Her heartbeat quickened as she stared at his seemingly lifeless body. She saw Ruby, waiting at the water’s edge with her sister, race towards him while throwing Crescent Rose to the side, only to hear a dark laugh.

“Hehheheh,” Doctor Light chuckled, blood dripping from his mouth, “at least I got one.”

Raven slowly turned her head to regard him, saw his mad grin, and felt something within her snap.

“You… MURDERER!” she screamed at the top of her lungs, her hair and cloak whipping out at all sides as dark tendrils erupted out of her. Raven’s body elongated, her eyes turned red and splitting into two pairs as she gazed upon the suddenly terrified Doctor Light with fury. The front of her cloak opened, revealing a dark and vast void, and before anyone could react, a dark tentacle thrust out and grabbed Doctor Light’s body.

“No, no! Not the dark, not the dark!” Doctor Light screamed as Raven pulled him completely inside, encasing him in the darkness. The other Titans could only watch in horror as they heard his screams, the shattering of bone, tearing of flesh, and other sounds they couldn’t even begin to describe. Then, after what seemed like an eternity, the sounds ceased, and Raven shrunk back down to her normal size.

But Doctor Light did not return. Raven’s back was facing the rest of the Titans, who were unsure of what to do. Starfire, having recovered, slowly flew up to her from the outside of the building, unable to see Raven’s face from the dark shadow of her cloak.

“Friend Raven…?” Starfire began as she slowly floated up to her. Raven said nothing, her head continuing to face down. Apprehension spread through everyone, but Starfire continued to press on. She gently placed her hand on Raven’s shoulder, who visibly flinched at the sudden contact.

“Raven…” Starfire continued, forcing back tears, “I promise you that friend Beast Boy will be alright. Please, calm down.”

Raven continued to remain silent as her shoulders began to quickly shake. Starfire quickly grasped her in a tight hug while rubbing Raven’s back, attempting to sooth her, only for the hairs on the back on her neck to stand on end as she finally began to hear the sound Raven was emitting, one that was not filled with grief.

It was laughter.

Starfire quickly ejected herself from Raven as the half-demon finally tilted her head upwards to face the Tamaranean, shadow no longer cloaking it. To Starfire’s horror, she was not greeted by the tear-stained face of Raven. Instead, four red eyes glared at her as Raven’s grey skin gave way to blood red, and then she spoke.

“ _You failed_ ,” Raven declared through a distorted voice, her outfit warping into a dark and twisted mockery as her possessed body floated upwards. The sky turned dark red as black clouds consumed it. The sea turned to molten magma and lightning began to flash as flaming meteors rained down. As one passed it illuminated all of their shadows, and to everyone’s horror, Raven’s was not her own.

Instead, it was that of a muscular figure, with two horns erupting out of the side of his head, and four red eyes glaring at them all.

“Trigon…” Blake muttered, and her possessed friend laughed.

[~][~]


	22. Trigon, Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Titans fight to free a possessed Raven from Trigon's grip, while keeping their friend in the process.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 16: Trigon, Part 1 **

[~][~]

Sebastian Blood the Seventh sat in his private office, holding a glass of chardonnay in his hand. His office was quiet, the only sound being that of the wine swirling in the glass alongside his even breathing. He himself was the picture of calm satisfaction while the outside world descended into chaos.

It had been the work of an entire lifetime. Multiple lifetimes, in fact. His entire paternal line had been utterly devoted to achieving this aim, of allowing their God to enter their earthly plane of existence. Yet all of those who came before failed due to their utter incompetence. They stayed in the shadows, away from the public eye as they did their dark work, held back by centuries of tradition. His own father continued leading them down this path. So, Brother Blood did what his own father did: he killed his father in cold blood, took the church for himself, and set them down the path of their current success.

More screams echoed from outside, followed by gunshots and explosions. Undoubtedly from the police hastily trying to fend off his followers, whom he had subtly shipped in from around the world. All were armed with the greatest weapons from the LexCorp arsenal, and his cathedral had been turned into an impenetrable fortress. There was no conceivable way for the JPD to breach their walls.

The Titans possibly could, but to Blood’s immense satisfaction,  they were presently occupied. The sight of his Lord’s influence spreading from their tower, despite their hastily constructed defenses, brought joy to his heart. Soon, they would fall, and the world would follow.

He heard a gentle knock on the door, and he granted his visitor entry.

“Brother Blood,” an acolyte said, “everything is going to plan. However, it appears that the Justice League is mobilizing. Their Watchtower is repositioning itself over us as we speak.”

Brother Blood took a sip of wine. “Are they doing anything else?”

“No. We believe they’re giving the Titans more time to take back control of the situation. But if they take the field—”

“Our Lord’s work will be done well before then,” Blood insisted as he rose to his feet. We strode over to a large portrait of himself, gazing upon it. He admitted that it was a personal vanity, but it was one he appreciated. The craftmanship was exquisite, and the artist well compensated for their work. Its image allowed him to focus on his acolyte’s words. The Justice League’s mobilization was, admittedly, concerning. Although he mostly dealt with the Titans, the League was potentially a far graver threat to their plans. Should they decide to attack, he doubted his odds of victory.

“Still,” Blood continued, “best not to place our hopes on the League continuing to show self-restraint. Prepare the countermeasures and jamming devices.”

“That will only buy us a few minutes, at most.”

“Then we will use those minutes. Go,” Blood ordered. The acolyte bowed and walked out of the room to fulfill his leaders’ commands. Sebastian took another drink of his wine, crossing one of his arms behind his back. He then heard a faint commotion coming from the basement, and so he calmly opened the secret passage in his office then walked down the stairs. Going past the wall where Arthur Light was previously held prisoner, he opened another door to reveal a large hollowed-out chamber with rows of heavy cages held within. He could hear the creatures roaring and rumbling from inside their confines, struggling to free themselves while unable to escape.

Around their cages was a red aura, indicative of his master’s work. Combining their natural connection towards negative emotions with Trigon’s dark magic was ingenious, in Blood’s opinion, but more than that he felt the creatures themselves were utter perfection. They were the living embodiments of everything his church stood for. After all, mankind was sinful, and these creatures actively sought them out to destroy them. They had no need for food nor drink nor rest and were actively drawn to negative emotions.

“Magnificent,” he whispered in awe as he caught a glimpse of one of their eyes.

* * *

 

It could never be said enough that Dick Grayson had a complication relationship with his father. Bruce Wayne was many things. He was stubborn, hard to get along with, paranoid about almost everything, and so set in his ways sometimes it was like talking to a brick wall. Yet, at the same time, the man had raised him when he lost everything. Bruce took Dick into his home, expected nothing of him, all because he knew exactly what the other had just gone through. To lose everything he held dear. Dick loved Bruce Wayne, considered him to be his father in all but blood, but that didn’t mean he valued things the same way Bruce did.

For starters, there was the fact that Dick _knew_ Bruce was paranoid enough to create contingency plans just in case his fellow superheroes went rogue. After all, he did the exact same thing for all the villains. Making them for other heroes was a logical next step. But it felt wrong to the former Boy Wonder to make them and keep them secret from everyone else, like it was a violation of their sacred trust.

Which was why, when Dick Grayson created his own upon founding the Teen Titans all those years ago, he brought everyone into the loop. They knew just how dangerous they could be if someone were to take control of them, especially Raven, and so they helped to create methods on how to stop themselves should the need arise. Cyborg created a software virus that was so far beyond his ability to counteract, or rather he refused to even try, it could shut him down at a moment’s notice. Perfect for if someone, or something, took control of his mechanical body against his will. Starfire helped to design a drug cocktail that would make her extremely sad, preventing her from using her powers, as well as creating a compound based off chromium to short out her powers directly. Beast Boy, using his mother’s research, helped design a universal tranquilizer that could only work on him and him alone, while M’gann helped the other Titans to create a compound that would disrupt her added Martian DNA, making her susceptible to solar radiation. All of them hoped that they would never have to be used, but each understood the necessity.

So, when Nightwing activated Raven’s personally designed countermeasure, it broke his heart. From deep beneath Titans Island, unbothered by the sudden change of the bay from cold seawater to hot magma, a series of ethereal beams shot high into the air. Once they reached their zenith, more beams extended outward, connecting each of them before finally settling on a geometric pattern reminiscent of a pentagram. Then, once it was fully set, purple shields extended down and cut into the magma, shutting out any magical interference from both the outside and the inside.

The Trigon-possessed Raven looked at the shield with mild amusement, watching how the magma outside of it quickly became seawater, then laughed.

“ _I see my daughter prepared for this. Impressive, it managed to completely seal off my influence in this realm outside of its barriers,_ ” his voice bellowed out of Raven’s mouth. With her back still turned to them, Nightwing took the chance and threw a bolo towards her. The object wrapped itself around her chest, pinning her arms to the side, but she didn’t seem to be apprehensive. In fact, as she turned around to gaze upon them with her four glowing-red eyes, a wicked smirk was on her face.

“Let. Her. Go,” Nightwing demanded, unrestrained fury breaking through. Behind him, he could hear the other Titans, as well as Weiss, Blake, and team JNPR aim their weapons straight at her. Even without empathic abilities, the sheer rage they were all emitting was palpable.

“ _Now, why would I do that?_ ” Trigon asked as he burned away the bolo’s wires, freeing Raven’s arms. “ _After all, THIS IS WHAT SHE’S MADE FOR!!_ ”

“NO, SHE’S NOT!!!” Starfire suddenly shouted before firing a massive beam of UV energy straight at her. Her body brimmed and pulsed with energy, and Trigon found himself consumed in the neon beam. Cyborg quickly joined in, firing his sonic cannon at full blast while angry tears streamed down his face. Weiss created a Glyph beneath Raven’s feet, trying to pin her in place, while the others fired their weapons. Jaune, the only one without a gun, kept his shield extended out in front just in case his possessed friend attempted a retaliation.

Even still, he was completely unprepared for when a dark reddish-purple slice struck his shield, sending him flying back and crashing against the wall. Soon after, a pulse of magic shot out, dissipating Weiss’ Glyph, breaking apart the concentrated soundwaves, and destroying Starfire’s attack. Unperturbed, Starfire shouted indignantly as she flew towards her possessed friend, pinning her to the ground where she began to pummel her.

“GET! OUT! OF! HER!” she yelled at the top of her lungs, each word punctuated by a fist. But Trigon only smiled before catching Starfire’s fist with Raven’s hand, then reared her legs back and kicked. Starfire felt the air escape from her lungs as she was flung back and through the ceiling. Rather than simply getting up, Trigon turned Raven’s body into shadow and reformed behind the heroes.

“ _Die,_ ” he commanded, and shot orbs of magic into the heroes. The attacks struck, sending them sprawling to the ground and Nightwing almost over the edge. He was able to latch onto a hold, however, and as he dangled off the building he looked down to see Ruby, Yang, and M’gann attempting to rouse Beast Boy. Steeling his gaze, Nightwing hoisted himself back up, flipping his body to land on his feet and pulling out his stun batons at the same time.

“You first.” Then, with a shout, Nightwing and the other Titans charged.

* * *

 

“Oh, gods, what is happening?!” Ruby wailed as she took sight of the literal hellscape she now found herself in, wondering just how everything went so wrong so fast.

“H’ronmeer, please do not take him from me. C’eridyall, lend me your strength,” M’gann prayed to the Martian Gods of Death and Life, respectively, as she psychically attempted to heal her brother’s body. Yang was performing CPR, alternating between breathing into his mouth and compressing his chest.

Above them, they could hear their friends battling against someone. Who, exactly, was unknown, but Ruby had a sinking feeling she knew who it was. The magical barriers being erected around the island, the sudden change in scenery, and the sporadic bursts of dark magic being emitted from the tower told her as such.

Trigon had won. The stress, the fear, the self-doubt, all of it worked to wear away Raven’s barriers to their weakest level in years. Beast Boy getting mortally wounded was the straw that broke the camel’s back. For the first time since Brainiac, Ruby didn’t know what to do. How could they, a group of teenagers and young adults, hope to defeat a demon on par with a god? She hoped that the Justice League were on their way. It’d be impossible to miss what was happening right now.

“He’s breathing, but he’s not waking up!” Yang shouted, breaking Ruby’s concentration and causing her to run over to him. True to her sister’s word, Beast Boy was indeed breathing, albeit shallowly. The wound on his chest was sealed, courtesy of M’gann injecting him with yet more of her blood and psychically encouraging his body to heal faster.

“Is there anything we can do?” Ruby asked, but M’gann shook her head.

“He’s slipping into a coma! I’m going to reach inside his mind, try to pull him out.”

“Got it!” Yang replied as she jumped to her feet and reloaded Ember Celica. She looked up to the battle overhead, seeing an obviously possessed Raven flying around the ruins of the tower as she and Starfire engaged in a dogfight. From the inside of the tower were the rest of her friends, trying to shoot her down from relative safety.

Ruby, understanding Yang’s thoughts immediately, nodded. “Go help them. I’ll protect M’gann and Beast Boy.”

Yang nodded back before grappling herself up to the others, soon disappearing from Ruby’s sight. Ruby then placed herself protectively in front of Beast Boy and M’gann just as the Martian placed her hands gently on his head. She closed her eyes and concentrated, and when she opened them, they had gone from a deep red to a bright white that shone from within.

“M’gann, hurry,” Ruby begged as she loaded Crescent Rose.

* * *

 

Beast Boy was floating. Normally that wouldn’t be anything out of the ordinary. There were many times during easy days where he’d turn himself into a marine animal and just swim out in the open water. But this wasn’t floating in water. Instead, he found himself floating in an empty void.

“… Huh. Well, this can’t be good,” he said to himself. He tried to remember what happened to him, but everything was hazy. The most he remembered was Raven, a piercing pain, then blackness. He lightly pounded his head, trying to remember, but again he found himself coming to a blank.

“Great. The _one_ time I need to remember something, I can’t. Perfect, I can imagine Raven’s response now.”

“’Garfield, seriously. Stop thinking about your useless video games and focus on something important for once,’” a vaguely familiar female voice suggested.

“Yeah, that. Thanks.” Beast Boy closed his eyes and nodded as the strange voice told him what he was already thinking. He then fully registered that the voice was not his own, and his eyes shot open as he swiveled his head to look next to him. Much to his surprise, resting on his shoulder was a small green monkey that was looking deep into his eyes.

“What up?” the monkey asked, and Beast Boy couldn’t help but scream. Surprised, the monkey did as well and continued to do so after Beast Boy picked it up and hurled it across the void. The small animal twisted and turned as it tried to right itself while Beast Boy angled his body to face it.

“Who are you?!” he yelled, trying to turn himself into a flying animal, only to not feel anything. As he continued to try and transform, the monkey managed to right itself and face Beast Boy with a slightly annoyed look on its face.

“Okay. First, that was rude. It’s rude to throw monkeys through the air.”

“Well, it’s rude to surprise people by showing up out of nowhere on their shoulder!” Beast Boy replied as he continued to try and transform while the monkey had a contemplative look on its face. It then nodded.

“Point taken. Second, don’t bother trying to use your powers in here. They won’t work, and right now you look like you’re constipated.”

Beast Boy glared at it and tried to transform one last time defiantly. True to the monkey’s word, however, he couldn’t. Sighing to himself, Beast Boy hung his head.

“Great…”

“Hey, don’t feel bad about this,” the monkey said as it swam its way over to the young boy. “Trust me, it happens to everybody.”

“Everybody finds themselves floating in space talking to a green monkey?”

“Well, not this _exact_ thing, but…” The monkey shook its head and raised its small hands up. “Look, we’re getting off track here. There are, frankly, a lot more important things to worry about.”

Beast Boy lightly glared at the monkey before sighing and nodding his head in agreement.

“Yeah, like where the heck am I?”

“Oh, that’s easy. We’re inside your head. _Kinda_ empty in here,” the monkey answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Beast Boy looked at it incredulously, ignoring the insult, with one of his eyebrows raised.

“Okay… Why are we in my head, then?” Beast Boy asked.

“You’re in a coma.”

“I’m in a WHAT?!”

“Just a small one!” the monkey clarified as if that made it better. Seeing how Beast Boy was beginning to panic, the monkey continued. “Look, you took a big, and I mean _big_ hit just now. Shot almost through the heart by photons, followed by a ten-story fall. You’re lucky you didn’t die on impact.”

“How come I didn’t?” Beast Boy asked, still hysterical, but the monkey merely sighed.

“Haven’t you figured that out, yet? Your body is a living representation of the entire animal kingdom, plus a little extra. That includes animals like lemmings, and as such your body is more resistant to those kinds of falls. They still hurt, obviously, and you do have a few broken bones, but assuming you and your friends make it out of this, they’re nothing a few hours of bedrest won’t fix. Let me tell you, your metabolism is _insane._ ”

Beast Boy looked at the monkey for a few more moments. He felt his fear and confusion slowly ebb away, until finally he found himself calm.

“Okay, okay…” Beast Boy muttered to himself, then looked at the monkey. “You obviously know what’s going on. Can you…?”

“Certainly,” the monkey replied. Internally, Beast Boy was finding it odd how used he was to this strange encounter but cut his thoughts off as the monkey continued. “Yeah, your friend, Raven? Her dad came into town, and let me tell you, he’s a piece of work. Constantly angry, extremely violent, not to mention _very_ controlling.”

“Are you telling me Raven’s been taken over by Trigon?!” Beast Boy felt his panic come back as the monkey nodded its head.

“Bingo!”

“How? How did this happen?”

“I think the better question is, what didn’t happen? Over the past month, her mental barriers have been constantly under attack from nearly all angles. Self-doubt, anger, fear, everything and the kitchen sink. They were already weakened by the time Trigon played his final hand, and you getting shot by Doctor Light was what finally kicked them down completely. He basically waltzed right in afterwards.”

“I…” Beast Boy was at a loss for words. Raven, one of his best friends, getting possessed by her evil father? That was a true nightmare scenario, one that was hard to describe with words. When he made eye contact with the monkey, however, he grew angry and lashed out. “How do you know this? Who are you, anyway?”

“Me? I’m just a representative of the group that gave you your powers,” the monkey answered, its body briefly flashing red before going back to green. “Figured I should probably step in right about now. We didn’t want you to die and all.”

“What are you talking about? What group? M’gann’s blood transfusion and Sakutia gave me my powers.”

“You see, that’s where you’re wrong,” the monkey waved its paw around, a single finger outstretched. “Sure, your explanation accounts for part of it, but it’s nowhere near the full truth. Your powers extend far beyond that of normal Martian transformation. Ever hear of the law of conservation of mass?”

“Yes, I am aware that I constantly violate that,” Beast Boy dryly replied.

“Good, then we’re on the same page. Listen, the point is, your powers extend far beyond what you currently believe them to be. You’ve only just _begun_ to tap into them, and until now, you’ve been limiting yourself.”

“Limiting myself?” Beast Boy, now genuinely intrigued. The monkey smiled at his question and pointed its finger at him.

“Yes, finally a worthwhile question! You, Garfield, are limiting yourself. What’s the smallest you’ve turned into yet? The _Drosophila melanogaster,_ correct?”

“The fruit fly, yes.”

“Try going smaller, and I’m not talking about another insect. I’m talking microbes. Tardigrades, for instance. You can even split your mind and turn into a swarm of wasps. If it’s part of the animal kingdom, you can turn into it. And that’s just limiting yourself to Earth! If you wanted to, you could turn yourself into an animal from your new friends’ home planet, and let me tell you, there were some interesting animals living on Remnant. Vacuo itself was home to some insane creatures. Mole Crabs, for instance. Same goes for Tamaran or any other alien planet with life on it.”

_“_ Whoa…”

“Yeah, whoa. Plus, if you wanted to, you could turn yourself into another human being. They’d be green, and with your voice, and without their powers, but you could.”

“Really?” Beast Boy asked, and the monkey nodded. “Oh, I have plans now. Thank you.”

“No prob. Anyway, we’ve gotten off track again. Point is, things are going to hell up there, and right now, you and the little silver-eyed girl are pretty much the only people capable of stopping this before it gets any worse.”

“What?” Beast Boy asked, tilting his head. How could he and Ruby stop Trigon? They were the youngest out of everyone. They’d stand no chance at stopping Trigon on their own.

“You still don’t get it, do you?” The monkey solemnly asked.

“Don’t get what?” Beast Boy asked again, but the monkey merely chuckled and shook its head.

“Ah, teenagers. They’re always the most interesting stage of life to look at.”

“Now I’m confused again.”

“You’ll find out soon enough,” the monkey replied cryptically. Beast Boy narrowed his eyes before a bright light shone from above.

“ _Garfield! Gar, it’s me!_ ” a voice shouted from the light.

“M’gann?” Beast Boy gasped as he gazed up into the light. It was warm, and he found that it somehow didn’t hurt his eyes at all. The monkey smiled warmly at the sight, then began to fade away.

“Looks like my time is up. Remember, you and Ruby are the only ones who can stop this.”

“How? How can we stop it?” Beast Boy asked as he began to float up towards the light.

“I’ll give you a hint: you were there today.”

Before Beast Boy could inquire any further, the light broke, and he suddenly found himself back in the real world. He violently coughed, feeling the sudden heat of the warm air breaking on his skin, and his breathing became ragged.

“Garfield!” M’gann shouted as she tightly embraced her brother. Beast Boy continued to cough, each one making his lungs feel as though they were on fire, and when he could finally bring himself to look around, he found himself in a literal Hell.

Titans Tower, once proud, gleaming, and majestic, was now lying in ruins. Shattered glass was strewn across the island, metal support beams jettisoning out of rubble. It was practically a skeleton at this point, and it was obvious to everyone that soon it would fall entirely. Around them, he could see his friends and comrades desperately fighting against a red-skinned and four-eyed Raven, who herself was cackling demonically as she flung the Titans around like ragdolls.

“What…what happened?” Beast Boy gasped out as he took everything in.

“Trigon. Trigon happened,” Ruby answered, continuing to stand guard over her friends. M’gann moved to pick her brother up, but Beast Boy stopped her with a raised hand and slowly rose to his feet. He swayed, but M’gann was there immediately to lend her shoulder.

“Thanks…sis,” Beast Boy said, feeling the adrenaline keeping him upright despite the pain, and M’gann smiled. They looked back at the fight before them, seeing how the possessed Raven was grabbing Yang and squeezing her cruelly. Yang was screaming in agony but managed to get her arm free and fire a slug into Raven’s face, causing her to flinch and release the blonde huntress.

“We need to get in there!” Ruby declared as she prepared to charge into battle, only for Beast Boy to cut her off.

“No…that won’t work. Trigon’s too entrenched,” Beast Boy proclaimed, but Ruby spun around angrily just as Weiss’ latest Glyph was shattered with ease.

“I can’t just sit here and do nothing!” Ruby shouted, but Beast Boy held up a hand weakly. He found that it was getting easier now, so he had that going for him at least.

“I’m not…suggesting that,” he replied. “I… I think I have a way to free Raven.”

At his statement, Ruby and M’gann both looked at him expectantly.

“Well?” M’gann asked, and Beast Boy found the strength to remove his weight off her.

“Inside Raven’s room,” he began, “there’s a mirror. A small, handheld silver mirror. One that she uses for her meditation.”

“What does a mirror have to do with saving Raven?” Ruby asked.

“By using it,” Beast Boy continued, “she goes inside of her mind, and I know from experience that anyone can use it to go there, too. Meaning—”

“We can use it and go inside her mind,” M’gann finished, her eyes wide. Seeing her brother nod at her statement, M’gann excitingly continued. “We could go inside, free her, and help her banish Trigon from her body!”

“Exactly,” Beast Boy proclaimed, and Ruby nodded excitingly.

“Well, come on! Let’s go!” Ruby began as she started to run towards the tower. M’gann, knowing that not only would Beast Boy be in danger staying out here in his current state but that he’d be insulted if he wasn’t brought along, picked him up bridal style and flew after the Red Reaper. They traveled through the ruins of Titans Tower, avoiding the mangled bodies of the cultists to the best of their ability. Trigon had obviously killed them, and part of M’gann was sickened. At the same time, they directly facilitated this, so another part of her felt it was karmic justice.

They finally reached Raven’s room, and as with the rest of the tower, it was in shambles. Her bed was completely shattered, holes blown into her walls, and part of her floor and ceiling had completely caved in on itself. One thing, however, that was still in perfect condition was Raven’s nightstand, which caused Beast Boy to sigh happily.

“Oh, thank God, it’s still here,” Beast Boy said as he opened the drawer. He threw a few scattered papers and books out of it haphazardly before finally pulling out a small mirror. It was just as he described, although Ruby couldn’t help but note the glass was cracked. She _really_ hoped that wouldn’t be a problem with what they were about to do. She’d prefer to come out the other end of this thing in one piece, if at all possible.

Beast Boy walked back over to them and held it out in front of the trio.

“You guys ready?” he asked.

“Yes,” M’gann immediately answered, and Ruby nodded.

“Let’s go save our friend,” Ruby proclaimed. A moment later, dark tendrils ejected out of the mirror, pulling all three inside, and the mirror fell to the ground with a soft clang.

* * *

 

Yang dove to the side as Raven – if she could even call her friend’s possessed body that – attacked her with a slice of magic. Just as her feet left the ground, the slice shattered a chunk of concrete into tiny fragments that bounced off her. Each impact stung slightly, her diminished Aura dipping further down, before the Golden Dragon landed with a roll. She jumped up again as soon as she could, dodging yet another blast from Raven, and twirled around to fire two rockets from Ember Celica into the possessed half-demon. Raven was consumed in a ball of fire which she quickly blew away with a magical pulse.

“ _Did you really think that would work?_ ” Trigon mockingly asked as he held up a sphere of magic in Raven’s hand. It pulsed wildly, purple sparks arcing through the air and leaving scorch marks along the rubble. Yang didn’t respond, instead firing a few shotgun rounds as she strafed in a circle. Behind her, she saw Blake and Weiss run towards Raven.

“I’m sorry, Raven!” Blake yelled as she fired Gambol Shroud towards her.

“We’ll get you something nice after this!” Weiss declared, forming a glyph behind her. It glowed blue from an infusion of Freeze Gas, and Weiss then moved the Glyph in front of her. Shards of ice grew on its surface before Weiss rotated her pointed Myrtenaster to the side. As though it were the pulling of a trigger, a hail of ice shot towards Raven. The possessed half-demon, rather than attempt to flee or dodge, merely smirked and cocked her head.

“ _The work of a child,_ ” Trigon declared as he easily constructed a wall in front of himself. The ice simply broke apart before Trigon swiftly gathered the remains. He engulfed the fragments with his magic before redirecting them straight at Weiss. The Ivory Mage hastily created a White Glyph to intersect the projectiles, but a few managed to make it through and cut into her. She grunted from the pain, feeling the dark magic course through her body, but she remained firm just as Blake jumped down from above.

The Faunus had hoped to catch Trigon off-guard, but before she could even make it to her unfortunate enemy, Raven’s head snapped back a hundred-and-eighty degrees, shocking Blake to her core as the rest of Raven’s body faced an equally horrified Weiss. With an evil smile plastered on Raven’s face, Trigon lifted Raven’s hand up slightly. Blake soon found herself surrounded by a purple flame, and at first nothing happened.

Then, there was only agony, as though her very soul itself was set aflame. In the back of her mind, she recognized it as hellfire, but as she writhed on the ground she couldn’t find it within herself to really care. All she wanted was for it to stop.

“AAGH!” she heard Yang yell at the top of her lungs as she lunged towards Raven, but Trigon merely smirked as he raised his other hand towards her, rapidly levitating a column of concrete that plowed into her side. Yang was carried way, slamming into the side of Titans Tower, but before she could even attempt to get up, more concrete slammed into her. She was quickly buried under the rubble, and Raven’s body was forced to laugh.

“Hey, Four-Eyes!” Nora shouted. Trigon turned to face the hammer-maiden, only to receive a trio of grenades to the face. He drew away the fire, focusing it into a ball held in Raven’s hand, then ejected the flame towards her. Nora ran to the side, continuing to fire grenade after grenade as she ran away. Ren, meanwhile, crouched behind a chunk of concrete behind Raven, closed his eyes, and gently placed his hand to the ground.

‘ _Please, Brothers, work,_ ’ Ren thought as he extended his Semblance towards her. A cackling Raven suddenly went still as his power took hold, and Ren immediately felt the emotions swirling within her body. The rage, the mania, the ecstasy of being on the cusp of victory after so long; Trigon’s emotions, clearly.

Behind them all, Ren could also feel Raven, and to his horror, he found her to be entirely conscious of her body’s actions. The fear, shame, and anguish over seeing her friends getting torn apart by her father. Ren wanted to throw up, but he persisted under the smallest hope that if he could just calm her down, she’d be able to reassert herself.

‘ _Get out!_ ’ he heard Trigon’s booming voice echo in his mind, severing the connection he had formed between them and snapping Ren’s head back with a painful whiplash. As Ren struggled to recover, he opened his eyes to see the two pairs of Trigon’s burning-red eyes boring into his own. He couldn’t even raise Stormflower to defend himself before he was picked up and hurled through several slabs of concrete. He felt his bones rattle with each impact, and he struggled to maintain consciousness. When he finally stopped, Ren tried to prop himself up, only to feel Trigon slam magical fists upon his chest repeatedly.

“ _HOW DARE YOU?!_ ” Trigon roared as Ren’s vision began to blur and blacken. He could hear a faint yell as something pink slammed into Raven’s body with enough force to send the surprised demon flying off. Ren then saw an enraged Nora standing protectively over him, Magnhild shifted into its hammer form.

“YOU STAY AWAY FROM MY MAN!!” Nora yelled as Trigon roared, magic exploding from Raven’s body. Rubble flew outward, some hitting Nora’s face, but she paid them no heed as she ran straight towards her possessed friend. Raven flew towards her as well, firing a magical beam at the same time. Nora moved her hammer in front of herself and plowed through, surprising the demon enough for Nora to whack Raven’s body again to the side. The possessed half-demon’s body was carried with the hammer onto the ground, and Nora proceeded to slam Magnhild upon her body repeatedly. She continued to do so until Trigon wrapped a tendril around Nora’s waist.

“ _INSOLLENT CUR!_ ” Trigon roared as he whipped a flailing Nora across the pavement repeatedly then threw her body to the side like a ragdoll. He then floated Raven’s body upwards, deflecting a few starbolts from Starfire in the process. The Tamaranean air-tackled her possessed friend and together they flew through several walls of the remarkably still standing Titans Tower. Starfire was hurling powerful, energy-infused punches into Raven’s face until they fully cleared the building, where Starfire let go and allowed Raven’s body to be carried forward through inertia. She then followed up with a wide neon beam, slamming Raven against the magical barrier keeping the bulk of Trigon’s influence out of the city.

At the same time, Starfire couldn’t help but note that, even now, the influence was beginning to spread. Water was slowly turning into magma, and a red glow was spreading across the atmosphere. She couldn’t allow herself to ruminate, however, as Raven’s body pried itself from the magical shield.

“ _You think you can still win?_ ” Trigon rhetorically asked. Only now did Starfire notice how the voice was a mixture of his and Raven’s. It sent chills down her spine, but she merely frowned and held her arms up. Her eyes and hands glowed green, and the two Titans flew at each other at top speed. They impacted with enough force to generate a small shockwave, yet the two continued their aerial brawl.

Below them on the ground, an injured Nightwing tended to his fallen friends alongside an equally injured Cyborg.

“Cyborg, how are you doing?” he asked, hoping for a pleasant answer, but Cyborg shook his head and frowned.

“Not good,” he admitted, sparks flying from an open wound on his shoulder. It had been struck by one of Raven’s magic spells, tearing right through it as though it were paper. Cyborg considered it a miracle it hadn’t simply fallen off. “My systems are operating at only forty-percent capacity.”

Nightwing cursed under his breath as he helped Ren to his feet. He saw Weiss applying an Nth Metal coat to Blake, dousing the hellfire from the Faunus’ body, while Nora propped herself up on her hammer and made to rejoin her fallen boyfriend. Yang, meanwhile, angrily exploded from the mound of rubble she had been buried under, her hair set alight in a golden flame.

“When I get my hands on him,” Yang growled. Nightwing wasn’t quite sure if the Huntress was referring to Brother Blood, Trigon, or perhaps just both, but he agreed with her all the same. Seeing one of his best friends, his teammate trapped in a living hell, forced to become a slave to her father’s whims, made his blood boil. Deep down he prayed that when they finally manage to get Raven back, he wouldn’t run into the cult leader.

He doubted he’d be able to stop himself. He doubted _any_ of them would be able to, and yet he couldn’t find it within himself to really care.

“Where’s Ruby?” Jaune suddenly asked, Pyrrha holding him up on her shoulder.

“She was with M’gann, looking after Beast Boy,” Yang answered, reloading her shotgun-gauntlets at the same time.

“Well, they’re not there now,” Cyborg replied as he finished patching up the hole in his shoulder. Part of him was worried about that, but at the same time he felt that he knew where they went. Nightwing looked at him from the corner of his eye, figuring the same thing.

“Right now,” he began, “our best bet is with those three.”

“Then what are we going to do?” Pyrrha asked as Jaune removed himself from her shoulder.

Nightwing, in response to her question, pulled out both of his shock-batons. “Hold the bastard off.”

* * *

 

Ruby found it hard to perfectly describe her surroundings. Surreal was the closest word that came to mind. Disturbing, too.

“Pixar lied to me,” Ruby finally got out. Gone was the picturesque visage of the inner-workings of the human psyche she’d imagined when Beast Boy first told her of the plan. Instead was a ruined hellscape of jagged rocks floating in a blood-red, lightning filled sky. Rivers of magma flowed off the floating platforms into an endless abyss, and when the red lightning flashed, she could see the mountainous silhouette of a horned, four-eyed monstrosity.

Trigon. Ruby couldn’t help but think of him as being bigger than how Raven previously described him.

“Okay, Gar. You’ve been here before, somehow,” M’gann started, a little annoyed at how her younger brother obviously didn’t tell her about this little incident. “What can we expect?”

“Raven’s mind is…complicated,” Beast Boy admitted through a wince. He could feel that at least one of his ribs were broken, which made talking and breathing difficult.

“How complicated?” Ruby asked, trying to see how being inside a person’s mind could get any more complicated than it already was. Were the stones she was walking on actual rock, or was it simply brain matter and bundles of nerve cells Ruby’s mind perceived as rock? Was everyone’s mind like this? Was _her_ mind like this, and if so what did it look like? She hoped it looked better than this.

“As in, she has little copies of herself running around the place, each embodying a separate emotion of hers. I call them Emoticlones.”

Ruby and M’gann stared blankly at Beast Boy, who shrugged. Ruby pondered the statement, then her face lit up.

“Oh my god, it _is_ like Inside Out!” she exclaimed, and M’gann sighed.

“Anyway,” the White Martian pressed on while Ruby excitingly pondered the implications, “these ‘Emoticlones’. What are they?”

“They’re just what I said, living embodiments of her emotions,” Beast Boy reiterated. He then knelt and partially turned his hand into a claw, using it to draw diagrams on the ground.

“There’s eight in total,” Beast Boy explained as his sister and Ruby came over to him. “Pink Raven is her Joy, Gray is her Timidity, Green is her Bravery, Orange is her Rudeness, Yellow is her Knowledge, Purple is her Passion, Brown is her Sloth, and Red is her Anger.”

“Hmm,” M’gann hummed, rubbing her chin. “I can suspect that their personalities are obvious?”

“Yep,” Beast Boy said, popping the ‘p’. “Last time Cy and I were here, Anger was being used as a channel for Trigon to take over. It took us uniting all of the other emotions with Raven herself to overcome them.”

“So, that’s what we do,” Ruby declared. “We find the other Emoticlones, bring them to where Raven is being held, and kick Trigon out.”

“Is it really that simple?” M’gann pointedly asked, and Beast Boy sighed.

“I…don’t know. Raven was still in control of herself when that happened. There’s no telling if it would work now.”

Ruby paused and frowned. In the distance, another red flash illuminated Trigon’s silhouette, and she clenched her fist at the sight.

“We have to try,” she proclaimed. “Raven would do the exact same thing for us. We owe her nothing less.”

M’gann and Beast Boy looked at the Red Reaper then nodded. She was right. Even if the effort was doomed from the start, they had to at least try.

“Alright, let’s do it,” Beast Boy said as he rose to his feet.

“Where do we go first?” M’gann asked as the trio began walking down the stone platform.

“Raven’s mind is like a maze,” Beast Boy explained. “Each emotion is housed in its own separate place. We find them, we find the emotions and we’re one step closer to freeing Raven.”

Ruby liked the sound of that. Simple and straightforward. But, the more she thought about, the more a glaring problem sprang to mind.

“Uhh, quick question,” she began, “where do we go?”

Beast Boy moved to answer, only to stop himself. His mind became blank, and after a while he sighed and looked at his feet.

“… I don’t know,” he admitted, and M’gann couldn’t help but slap her face while Ruby simply looked a little peeved before straightening herself out.

“Well, let’s get going, then!” she shouted as she continued marching on. “Time’s wasting!”

The other two nodded along before following her. They kept close, moving at a quick but steady pace while keeping sure to avoid drawing attention toward themselves. The more distance they traveled, the more damage they saw being wrought across Raven’s mindscape. It was horrifying to the young Huntress, but she pressed on all the same until they finally came across a splitting path. One led to higher ground, while the other descended. Both ended with a hollowed-out circular stone, and Beast Boy snapped his fingers at the sight of them.

“Those are the doors,” he said. “They lead to the other personalities.”

“Really?” Beast Boy nodded at Ruby’s question, and she turned to ponder both portals. She couldn’t decide which one to go through, so she decided on a tried and true method.

“Eenie-meanie-minie-moe,” Ruby chanted as she quickly began alternating where her hand was pointing. Beast Boy and M’gann looked at her deprecatingly, yet neither of them had a better method so they went along with it. Finally, Ruby settled on the bottom path, and began walking down towards it.

“You’re going the wrong way,” a small, timid voice whispered out, halting the trio in their tracks. Ruby whipped Crescent Rose around towards the source, eventually finding herself aiming at a small cluster of rocks. M’gann and Beast Boy were staring at it as well, ready to strike at a moment’s notice when they saw a head peek out.

“Raven?” Ruby asked as she folded her weapon and strapped it to her back before jogging over. When Raven’s head disappeared behind the rock in fear, she stopped herself. The Red Reaper wondered why Raven would act in such a manner, only to remember one of the emotions Beast Boy had earlier described.

“Are you… Timid?” Ruby gently asked. Raven’s head peeked out once again, quickly nodding. Ruby nodded back, then Beast Boy crouched next to her.

“Hey, remember me?” he asked, and Timid nodded again. Beast Boy smiled. “I remember you, too. Come on out, okay? We’re trying to find Raven, and we need your help.”

“… I’m not much help to anyone,” Timid stated as she finally exited her makeshift shelter. Ruby immediately noted that she looked exactly like Raven. The only difference was that her cloak was grey in color, and her expression was fearful.

“What are you talking about? You’re a lot of help,” Ruby replied as she slowly walked up to the emotion. Timid looked at her and shook her head.

“It’s my fault we’re in this mess. If I only—”

“Nope,” Ruby interjected, surprising the others present. Timid moved to interject, only for Ruby to shake her head. “Nope, we are not having a pity party today. Instead, we’re going to go out, find the other yous, and kick your dad’s butt! Come on!”

Ruby suddenly grabbed Timid’s hand and led them both up the ascending path. Beast Boy and M’gann watched them go with surprise before moving after them.

“Where was she the last time?” Beast Boy wondered.

“What do you mean?” M’gann asked.

“I mean that Ruby would have been a huge help last time dealing with Timid Raven.”

“Oh, come on.” M’gann smiled. “She’s not that bad. A little sad, but…”

“Sis, you don’t understand how tiresome it is to have a person say ‘I’m sorry’ over, and over, and over again. Constantly, for every single infraction. Ones I didn’t even know she did, and others I wish she didn’t let me know.”

“I’m sorry!” Timid shouted back, her voice softened by the distance, and Beast Boy sighed.

“Imagine that but multiply it by ten-thousand.”

M’gann did the mental math, then winced. She could see how that situation would have quickly gotten old. Still, they had a job to do, and so they continued through the open portal. To both her and Ruby’s slight surprise, the air rippled around them as their surroundings changed. The sky above them was still blood-red, indicative of Trigon’s corrupting influence, but the landscape around was a serene grassy plain. Flowers marked the golden grass, Ruby could swear she heard giggling.

At the same time, however, she saw the grass and flowers dying on the far end of the field. Trigon’s corruption was spreading, and Ruby didn’t know how long they had.

“I’m sorry,” Timid apologized once again.

“It’s okay,” Ruby replied. “BB, which emotion lives here?”

“Joy, I think,” Beast Boy responded. They heard a giggle rise over the hills and he pointed towards it. “Probably somewhere over there.”

M’gann and Ruby nodded before running towards where Beast Boy had pointed. Timid remained rooted in place, prompting Ruby to come back and pick her up bridal style then rush back into the fray. Beast Boy and M’gann had disappeared behind a hill, but as Ruby got closer she began to hear shouts. She placed Timid back on the ground, pulling out Crescent Rose as she popped over the hill, only to see Beast Boy getting hugged by a pink-cloaked Raven.

“I’m so happy you’re here!” Joy proclaimed as Beast Boy tried to pry her off.

“Get off me!”

“No, hugging you makes me happy!”

“You’re _always_ happy!”

“Yep!”

Ruby and M’gann looked in mild fascination at the overly joyful Raven. This was an unexpected look for the half-demon, all smiles and full of rainbows. It unnerved them, while Beast Boy simply looked annoyed. He looked at the two girls for assistance, and with a smile on her face M’gann moved to get Happy Raven off.

“Alright, alright. Get off him, you’ve had your fun,” M’gann insisted.

“Okay!” Joy said as she let go of Beast Boy, causing him to fall on his butt. Joy giggled, and when she saw Ruby with Timid she smiled and waved. “Hello!”

“… Hi,” Ruby waved back. “Uh, where’s…?”

“The others? Oh, they’re hiding from Dad, mostly. Not me, though. I’m not going to let those guys ruin my mood.”

“That’s…good. Wait, what do you mean by ‘those guys’?” Ruby asked, suddenly very worried as the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. Joy smiled and pointed to the far end of the field.

“Oh, them!” Joy declared, and the three heroes followed her hand to see a horde of black creatures charging towards them. Ruby’s eyes widened as she recognized the black fur intersected with white bone plates and glowing red eyes.

“Those are Grimm, right?” Joy asked, and Ruby nodded. “Thought so. They aren’t fun to play with at all.”

“You think?!” Ruby shouted as she quickly aimed Crescent Rose at the horde and fired. The head of a Beowolf snapped back as the electrified rubber bullet slammed into it, the beast stumbling and twitching while the others charged onwards, before it shook itself and followed them. Ruby let out a cry of annoyance as she belatedly switched to a more lethal magazine.

With a wordless shout, M’gann and Beast Boy charged forward to meet the Grimm head on, Beast Boy turning himself into a rhino as they made contact. He impaled an Ursa on his horn while the nimbler Beowolves leapt on top of him. They clawed and bit at his thick hide, but M’gann flew into this and quickly destroyed them with a few well-placed punches and kicks. She tried to destroy another’s mind, only to quickly find that there was no mind in the first place.

“Well, that’s not creepy at all!” M’gann shouted as a Beowolf lunged at her. She turned intangible, causing the beast to flail through her with no damage wrought. Ruby, rejoining the fray, bisected the monster with her scythe, shooting a few more as she came to rest. When a Creep tried to bite her leg off, Ruby jumped and fired into its head, killing the Grimm instantly while using her Semblance to elevate herself. Using her glider-cape to slow her descent, Ruby fired shot after shot, each one striking the head of a Grimm and killing it. She aimed at another, only to see Happy Raven joyfully run through the horde without a care in the world.

“WHAT?!” Ruby shouted as she hastily shifted her aim, striking a Grimm in the leg that was lunging at the Emoticlone. Happy Raven laughed while spinning around the claw of an Ursa, which immediately was trampled by a green elephant. Beast Boy continued to swing his head from side to side, crushing and impaling Grimm with each movement, while M’gann flew above the horde. She concentrated and threw out telekinetic blasts, crushing the Grimm  almost instantly. There were only a few left, and M’gann felt confident for the first time that day. She then heard a scream, and she whipped her head around to see Timid running from a Creep. M’gann, using her super speed, flew towards the Grimm and slammed it into the ground. Its body still stirred, so M’gann punched it with enough force to split apart the head. Then, the body disintegrated into dust, and M’gann allowed herself to breath.

“I’m so—”

“Stop saying you’re sorry,” M’gann interrupted the emotion. Standing up, she turned angrily towards Happy Raven, who somehow managed to maintain her happy state even as Ruby and Beast Boy tore into her.

“Seriously, now was not the time for fun and games!” Ruby declared while pointing at Joy’s head. The Emoticlone merely giggled at the action, prompting Beast Boy to lightly growl.

“You could have gotten hurt, and right now that is the _last_ thing we need,” Beast Boy chastised.

“Oh, I know,” Joy said, causing Ruby to scoff theatrically.

“Then why did you treat the entire thing like a game?!” Ruby asked.

“Because I have to. I’m Raven’s happiness, and if I let myself not be happy, Dad’s one step closer to consuming her.” Joy’s answer caused Ruby and Beast Boy to stare at her in shock.

“…oh. Okay then, carry on.”

“Will do!” Joy saluted, then began skipping on. “Come on, I’ll show you to the others. Except for Anger, but she’s currently with dad and Raven now, so we’ll find them soon.”

The three heroes briefly pondered that statement for what it meant and immediately came to the same conclusion. As before, Trigon was using Anger as his chief vessel to take over Raven’s body. The presence of the Grimm inside of her head was alarming as well, but they knew that now was not the time to seek the answers to that.

“Gar,” M’gann whispered as they followed the emotion to another portal, “was she like…this last time?”

“Yes,” Beast Boy answered with a shudder. “Yes, she was.”

“Ah.”

The trio nodded at Beast Boy’s statement while continuing down the path. After a moment, Timid began to apologize for her fellow emotion’s actions, only for the three to cut her off with an instant declaration of forgiveness.

They finally reached the portal as most of the remaining grassland was consumed. Everyone was moving quicker now, wanting to reach the next area as soon as possible. When they went through the entryway, Ruby, M’gann, Beast Boy, and the two Emoticlones found themselves in a colossal library. More Emoticlones were already waiting for them, a yellow-cloaked and glasses-wearing Raven at their front.

“Close the door, now,” she ordered, and a green-cloaked Raven energetically did so. She fired a green orb of magic into the doorway, sealing it off just as more Grimm attempted to enter the library. Ruby felt her breath hitch as the portal shuddered, but soon went still.

“I think we’re good,” M’gann said as she sighed in relief. She then turned to face the yellow Raven, Knowledge if she remembered correctly.

“I apologize for the state,” Knowledge said she floated towards them. “But, given our current predicament, that is the least of my concerns.”

“Yeah, no kidding,” Beast Boy grumbled, only to jump back as a purple Raven suddenly shoved herself onto him. She had a weird look in her eyes, which disturbed the changeling more than he could describe. Before he could even say anything, Passion wrapped him in a big hug and held him close.

“You’re okay, you’re okay,” she whispered as she cradled him. Beast Boy blushed as he felt her hand rub against his head, and he turned his gaze towards his sister and Ruby in a plea for assistance. They gave none as they focused on Knowledge.

“Why are the Grimm here?” Ruby asked.

“Ever since Trigon broke through what was left of our barrier, he’s been letting in those creatures,” Knowledge answered, flipping through a book that projected an image into the air. “There’s around a hundred of them roaming Raven’s mind, each a projection of an actual.”

“Wait, you mean these _aren’t_ real Grimm?” M’gann asked for clarification, and Knowledge nodded.

“Precisely. It’s how he’s managed to get so many in here. Using his magic, Trigon has created mental copies to spread his corruption throughout Raven’s body and hunt us down while he focuses his attention on toying with our friends. Killing one merely reforms it somewhere else.”

“Toying?” Ruby felt a sinking feeling in her stomach, which intensified when Knowledge nodded.

“Yes. If Trigon truly wanted to, he could kill the others without a second thought. But, he wants all of us to suffer for preventing his conquest for so long.”

Ruby scowled and clenched her fist before a sudden quake caused the room to wobble. She swayed back and forth, waving her arms around before M’gann gently caught her.

“How do you know this?” M’gann asked, slightly unnerved by just how calm the yellow Raven was.

“I am the embodiment of everything Raven has ever learned. That includes her father, and his desire for torment.”

Ruby breathed sharply before steeling her gaze. She had to remain focused on the task at hand, and with Crescent Rose held tightly in her arms, she locked gazes with the Emoticlone.

“We have a plan to free Raven.”

“I know, that’s why we waited for you here and I had Timidity and Joy go get you. The last thing we need is to waste time.”

The Titans and Ruby turned their heads to look at both mentioned emotions. Timid shrunk into herself while Joy simply smiled a toothy grin and waved.

“I would have sent Bravery, but she insisted on taking the fight straight to our father with no regard to our safety.”

“Oh, come on! I coulda taken ‘em!” Bravery declared with a puffed-out chest.

“No, no you couldn’t.” Knowledge sighed and rubbed her forehead in annoyance. “In any case, right now we have to get to Raven and join with her. Otherwise, Trigon will be unstoppable.”

Ruby, M’gann, and Beast Boy looked at each other for a moment then back at the gathered Emoticlones. Both groups nodded at each other, and together they moved towards another portal at the other side of the library. Another quake ensued, toppling a few of the books while the others continued walking without interruption.

“Uggh, I hate walking,” the brown-cloaked Raven complained, a lazy drawl dragging out her voice.

“I don’t really care,” the orange-cloaked Raven responded with a rude huff. The group then reached the other portal, and Knowledge gently threw a yellow sphere into it.

“This will take us straight to Raven and Trigon,” she explained as a yellow swirl appeared between the stone. “I suggest you ready yourselves.”

Ruby, Beast Boy, and M’gann focused their gazes and straightened their backs. The changeling felt a brief pain course through his chest, but he ignored it. His friend was in danger, and that mattered more to him than any personal bodily damage. Then, he saw Ruby stride towards the portal, her determination echoing with each step, until she disappeared completely. One by one, the others followed suit until nothing was left in the library.

Had any remained, they could have seen it consumed and swallowed into the void.

* * *

 

Jaune grunted as he was slammed into a steel support beam. It dented from the impact, and the White Knight fell onto his butt. He groaned, rubbing his head before he saw a crimson blur race towards him. He barely had time to scream before Pyrrha’s body struck him, causing both to crash through the beam completely. The two partners laid sprawled on top of each other in pain.

“Uggh…” Jaune moaned.

“… I’m sorry…” Pyrrha apologized as she slowly rose off her partner’s body, fighting through the pain wracking her body, and helped Jaune to his feet. Together, they turned to face the possessed Raven and frowned.

The battle was not going well. It was obvious by now that Trigon was toying with the group, intending to draw out their suffering for as long as possible. His spells were watered down, his aim slightly off, all done with a cackling grin plastered across Raven’s face. She, herself, had taken on a more demonic appearance. Two pairs of horns were beginning to grow on top of her head, and her teeth were becoming sharp fangs. A dark aura was pulsating around her body, warping the air and sucking in the heat. Despite the sea of magma around them, Jaune could swear he saw his breath at times.

He wouldn’t let that stop him however, as he raised his shield in front of him and charged towards Raven. The possessed half-demon smiled as she lazily threw a spell towards him. Rather than try to block it, which Jaune knew would only end disastrously for him, he jumped to the side and allowed it to strike the ground behind him. His hair ruffled from the explosion, but he kept his stride and closed the distance. Jaune swung Crocea Mors at Raven, who instead of trying to dodge or even deflect his blow simply caught the blade with the palm of her hand.

“Uh…” Jaune said as Raven’s four eyes bored into his own, smiling wickedly at him.

“ _Jaune Arc,_ ” Trigon replied as he enveloped Jaune in an ethereal aura. Jaune could feel his limbs begin to stretch, and he fought to keep his screams down as Trigon marched towards him. “ _Oh yes, I know who you are. I know who all of you are. Did you honestly think that you, a fraud, could stand against me?_ ”

“Grrgh,” Jaune grunted, biting his lip to keep down his scream. He could feel his muscles straining, which Trigon noticed as he cruelly continued to pull Jaune apart. Finally, Jaune managed to find it within himself to speak again.

“Not…really…,” he admitted, tasting a hint of copper on his tongue, “but…she might…”

Trigon looked confused for a moment, giving Pyrrha enough time to hurl Akoúo̱ at Raven’s head. It rebounded towards Pyrrha with a dull thud, causing Trigon to flinch and drop Jaune from his grasp.

“…ow…” Jaune groaned as he landed on his back. He didn’t have time to wallow, however, as Pyrrha raced towards a furious Raven.

“ _HOW DARE YOU?!_ ” Trigon roared as he sent a wave of dark magic towards Pyrrha. She jumped and twirled sideways over attack, throwing Akoúo̱ at the top of her spin and finishing with a three-point landing. Trigon angrily deflected the attack and flew towards Pyrrha, who herself fired Miló towards her advancing form. A magical shield prevented the bullets from making any headway, and so when the demon closed the distance between them she reconfigured her rifle into a sword, recalled Akoúo̱ with her Semblance, and engaged into a swift brawl.

The two combatants were moving so fast, it was hard for Jaune to accurately make out. Trigon, through Raven’s body, shot and whipped magic towards Pyrrha at every opportunity. The Crimson Guardian meanwhile, bobbed, weaved, jumped and twirled around each attack with expert precision. With each dodge, she counter-attacked with a slice or stab, occasionally bashing Raven with her shield.

Pyrrha sliced at Raven, only for her opponent to melt into shadow and quickly reform behind her. She whipped around to hastily thrust her shield in front of her just as Raven struck, sending Pyrrha skidding back across the rubble. She was able to keep her footing, however. Gritting her teeth, she charged at Raven with her shield up, reconfiguring Miló into its rifle form at the same time. She fired while charging, the bullets striking Raven’s body but not penetrating. When she got nearer, she jumped and delivered a flying kick into Raven’s gut, knocking her back slightly and allowing Pyrrha to uppercut her with the shield. Raven flew upward from the blow, and Pyrrha crouched and fired several shots into her descending body.

Raven’s body landed in a heap, but quickly disappeared into shadow and stood right back up. An enraged look was crossing her face, one that looked terrifying to the Crimson Guardian. Pyrrha, undeterred, stood her ground and simply banged Miló against Akoúo̱ twice in a challenging display. Trigon gritted Raven’s teeth, and the red of her skin darkened into a cool maroon. The two charged at each other again just as Jaune managed to regain his bearings and rush to join his partner. Trigon saw this, and much to Jaune’s surprise, smiled.

Jaune felt a tendril wrap around his ankle, and with a shout he was lifted high into the air. The tendril began to whip him back and forth across the ground, breaking Pyrrha’s concentration long enough for Trigon to wrap a tendril around her entire body, immobilizing her. He began to squeeze, and Pyrrha felt her bones constrict.

“ _Do you not see how futile your resistance is?_ ” he mocked. “ _You couldn’t stop Brainiac from destroying your world, and his powers are pitiful compared to mine. What hope do you have?_ ”

“Gah!” Pyrrha lightly screamed as she struggled to free herself but was unable to do so. Trigon smirked, catching a few grenades with his magic and hurling them back towards Nora. Ren charged towards her as well, firing Stormflower at full auto as he closed the distance. In a mocking display of power, Trigon allowed the bullets to strike him, his magic instantly healing the wounds they caused. Ren closed the distance, slicing up Trigon’s body with his bayonets, only to receive the same result.

Growing annoyed with this distraction, Trigon shot Ren away with a pulse of magic, causing his body to be hurled into Nora’s. The two collapsed in a heap, but before they could even attempt to rise, Trigon buried them under a mound of rubble. Still smirking to himself, he felt a shotgun blast strike his head, recoiling it back slightly. Slowly, he turned Raven’s head to regard Yang and Blake, who were in less than stellar conditions. Their Auras were flickering, and bruises were beginning to form across their bodies.

Turning towards them, Trigon slowly walked forward with Raven’s hands outstretched, reddish-purple orbs concealing them as her cape billowed behind her. With a yell, Yang shot forward at her possessed friend, throwing punch after punch into Raven’s body. To her anger, each blow was merely absorbed by shadow, doing no damage whatsoever. Blake, circling behind Trigon, fired Gambol Shroud into her back, only for the bullets to completely phase through Trigon and strike a surprised Yang. She stumbled back, crossing her arms to protect herself, only to give Trigon an opening to grab Yang with magic and hurl her into the Faunus. The two flew back and struck a wall of concrete, shattering it into thousands of tiny fragments as their Auras finally broke.

“Yang…” Blake mumbled as she struggled to fight through the intense pain coursing through her body but found herself unable to rise. Yang, her arms shaking, pushed herself slowly up while glaring at Raven’s approaching body, only to feel Raven’s heels violently push her back to the ground.

“ _There, where you belong,_ ” Trigon taunted. “ _Under my heel, just like the rest of this pathetic world._ ”

“Screw…you…” Yang spat, only for Trigon to respond by violently kicking her side. Yang felt the air leave her lungs as she heard a pop, and she clutched her side in pain.

“ _Know your place, and you may just live._ ” He ordered and turned to face the last remaining Titans. A battered and bruised Nightwing, Starfire, and Cyborg were racing towards them, the Tamaranean throwing starbolts at Raven’s body while Cyborg fired his plasma cannon. Trigon deflected them with ease, whipping them apart with tendrils of dark magic.

“YAAGH!” Cyborg yelled as he charged ahead, firing his plasma cannon at maximum intensity. Trigon merely let the plasma balls shoot through Raven’s body, warping her in grotesque ways to cause the projectiles to go through her without harm. When Cyborg got close enough, he threw a downward punch into the back of Raven’s head, buckling it down where it met a point-blank shot of his sonic cannon. As Trigon stumbled back, clutching Raven’s head in pain, Cyborg thrust his arms forward and combined them into one large canon. His back opened, revealing ports that glowed as he charged his weapon. Then, he fired a cone of sonic waves infused with plasma, sending a roaring Trigon back into the ruins of Titans Tower. Part of the building collapsed further from the damage, causing Cyborg to frown sadly.

“Ah, man. My Xbox, PlayStation, and Switch was in there…” he mentioned as he brought his attention back to a recovered Trigon. Raven’s body was no worse for the wear, much to Cyborg’s disappointment. Returning his arms to their normal configuration, he quickly raised them up to block a retaliatory strike from Trigon. The magic broke against his metallic arms, yet the force was powerful enough to send him skidding back across the ground. He ground his teeth and dug in his heels while ports opened on his back, each one filled with a small missile. At once, they shot out towards Raven and detonated on contact with her body, consuming her in a cloud of black smoke.

The smoke was quickly dissipated by a slice of reddish-purple magic, sending the surprised Cyborg flying back. Starfire flew around him while firing two beams of ultraviolet energy from her hands, joined by a pair of ocular blasts. The four beams converged on Raven, who constructed a shield to keep them away from her. Growing more tired of their interference by the moment, Trigon broke course and flew towards her. Starfire flew back, firing a few starbolts which Trigon easily dodged. Starfire continued to fly while looking back at Raven, throwing starbolt after starbolt, only for Raven to suddenly disappear in shadow. Surprised, Starfire stopped and turned her body from side to side, trying to find her.

She then felt pain erupt from her back and out her front. Slowly, she lowered her head to look at a blade of magic stabbing out of her. With wide eyes, she turned her head around to stare into Raven’s four glowing red eyes. With a fanged grin, Raven violently pulled the blade out of Starfire’s body. There was no visible wound, but Starfire clutched it all the same in utter agony as she lost control of her flight and crashed hard into the ground.

“Kori!” Nightwing shouted as he ran towards his fallen teammate and girlfriend, only for Raven to suddenly teleport in front of him. Stopping himself, Nightwing flipped over a shot of magic and struck Raven on the downward spiral with his electrified batons, spinning her around.

“ _Grrg,_ ” Trigon grunted as he reoriented himself. To the demon’s surprise, he felt a tinge of pain along Raven’s head where Nightwing’s attacks had hit him. He then looked at Nightwing’s batons, and he saw a small coat of a silver powder.

“ _Nth Metal…_ ” Trigon growled before an idea popped into his head. Smiling, he slowly floated up above Nightwing, taking delight in how heavy the Titan leader’s breathing was. “ _Tell me, how long were you going to sit on that?_ ”

“If you think I’m going to answer that…,” Nightwing replied before launching himself at Raven, firing a grappling hook to bring her towards him. He met her body with a rising knee, swinging a baton at the same time. Trigon blocked the baton with her arm, only for the other to suddenly slam into her gut, knocking her back.

“ _So you say,_ ” Trigon stated while clutching the afflicted area, still smiling, “ _and yet despite it being one of the only materials you have capable of possibly defeating me, you only use it now after all of your friends have fallen. How curious._ ”

Nightwing, rather than respond, threw a trio of explosive wing-dings towards his possessed friend, each one rocking her body. He then combined his batons into a large bo staff, each end electrified, and ran towards Raven with one end pointed forward like a spear. Nightwing slammed into her gut, sending volts of electricity through her body and sending her slightly back, but Trigon merely grabbed hold of the weapon and held it to Raven’s body.

_“You think I don’t know why you are only using it now, but you, Dick Grayson, are wrong. I know_ exactly _why you’ve refrained from using Nth Metal: you still care for her and think she can be saved._ ”

“We _will_ save her, you monster,” Nightwing growled as he suddenly let go of his staff. He then jumped on top of the end closest to him, causing the weapon to bend and rip itself out of Raven’s hands. The end closest to Raven uppercutted her, knocking her head back and causing the staff to spin in the air. Nightwing caught it and spun it end to end, each circle striking Raven multiple times. Each blow staggered her, forcing Trigon to grit Raven’s teeth as he flew back to gain some distance.

“ _Oh, I very much doubt that,_ ” Trigon taunted while lightly knocking Raven’s head with her fist. “ _There isn’t much left of her to save. What little remains will be consumed and replaced with my own design._ ”

“Raven is stronger than you think. She’s stronger than _you_ ,” Nightwing declared while throwing a wing-ding. Unlike last time, however, Trigon caught the projectile in between Raven’s fingers, crushing it with ease.

“ _I admit, Raven is powerful in many ways. Her efforts to keep me at bay were…impressive. But, what else can I expect from my only daughter and favorite child? Especially when her brothers were so…disappointing compared to her. They were unimaginative, unimpressive, and weak cretins who didn’t deserve my blood._ ”

This was the first Nightwing had heard of Trigon having other children, but he couldn’t say he was surprised given who Trigon was and his age. He hoped that these sons of Trigon weren’t still around, but that was a worry for another day as Trigon continued his taunting rant despite blocking more of Nightwing’s attacks.

“ _Her capacity to love was what made her stand out, however,_ ” Trigon admitted while grabbing hold of Nightwing’s staff. “ _Neither I nor my sons ever could, and ultimately that love is what makes her so powerful and perfect for my designs. Only she could open the door to Earth, a prize I’ve been yearning for for so long…_ ”

“You’ll continue to yearn for it!” Nightwing attempted a spin kick, only for Trigon to catch his foot and hurl him away. Nightwing managed to land himself properly, readying a wing-ding, only to pause at Trigon’s open posture.

“ _Dick Grayson… You care for Raven. You always have, and deep down, you know my daughter is beyond your ability to save. There is a way for you to stop me, but are you willing to pay the price?_ ”

Nightwing stopped cold. He knew exactly what Trigon was referring to. His mind edged towards it as he thumbed an Nth Metal knife holstered in his utility belt.

“ _Yes… Nth Metal, the ubiquitous material of Thanagar and its people. One capable of killing Gods. Were you to stab me with it now, I would die… But so would Raven._ ”

Nightwing hissed sharply, confirming Trigon’s unasked question. The demon’s laughter boomed across the island as he glared at him.

“ _Well? What are you waiting for? You have the chance to save your world right here and now. To stop me forever. Do it. DO IT!_ ”

“I won’t-!” Nightwing began, only for Trigon to cut him off.

“ _You fool. If you won’t listen to me,_ ” Raven’s features began to change, seemingly returning to normal as Trigon’s voice filtered out, “ _perhaps you’ll listen to her…_ ”

“What…?” Nightwing breathed as Raven’s horns receeded, her skin became its familiar grey, and her second pair of eyes disappeared. In a daze, she swayed back and forth and prepared to fall, only for Nightwing to dive forward, catching her in his arms.

“Raven! Raven, speak to me!” Nightwing begged, and Raven began to cough with her eyes closed.

“Di- Dick?” she barely got out.

“Yes, it’s me, Raven. Don’t worry, everything’s going to be fine!”

“Pl-please,” she whispered, her voice raspy as tears began to stream out of the corners of her eyes. “K-kill me, please… Don’t let…him win…”

Nightwing felt his heart shatter at Raven’s request, tears of his own coming out of his torn mask. Again, his eyes drifted towards the knife. Slowly, he pulled it out and held it above her, debating whether to fulfill her wish. Then, with a shout, he angrily threw the weapon away and held Raven close.

“No!” Nightwing declared. Raven, surprised, opened her eyes as Nightwing held her tightly. “Raven, I promise you that we will win! You and all of us, together!”

Raven stared out across the molten sea surrounding the ruins of Titans Tower, feeling Nightwing’s words shake into her core. She wrapped her arms around him as she began to sob, wanting this moment to last forever.

“Dick, you…you… _you fool,_ ” Raven’s voice suddenly gave way to Trigon’s demonic echo, and Nightwing felt a burst of agony erupt from his back as four large spikes of magic stabbed into him, two at the shoulders and two at the hips.

“GAAGH!” he screamed as the magic hefted him up as Raven’s features quickly gave way to her demonic form.

“ _You blind, foolish child. Throwing away the only weapon, the only chance you had to defeat me. And for what, a chance at a moral victory over me, one that kept your family intact? Your defeat was sealed the moment you let weakness cloud your judgement._ ”

Trigon gently floated over to the barrier as the other Titans writhed in pain along the ground, his magic coursing through them.

“You…won’t…win!” Nightwing shouted through the pain, only for Trigon to laugh.

“ _And who, exactly, stands to stop me? The three currently traversing my daughter’s mind in a desperate attempt to free her?_ ” Seeing Nightwing’s alarmed expression, Trigon smiled. “ _Oh, yes. I know they are here, and like you they stand no chance. Admittedly, the changeling’s survival is unexpected, but one that will be quickly rectified._ ”

Hearing this, Yang attempted to rise off the ground once again, only for the magic pinning her to tighten. The others met the same result, and Trigon laughed.

“ _It’s hopeless to resist. But fret not, you shall not die just yet. No, you will only receive that mercy once I am done with my work. First your precious city, then the Earth itself will follow. You will watch as the people you vowed to protect burn in agony, living out the rest of their feeble existence as my playthings, knowing that you failed. Only then, when you know the true depth of your failure, will I grant you the sweet mercy of death._ ”

Then, without saying another word, Trigon charged up a spell and fired it at the barrier. At first, it did nothing, but then, to their horror, cracks began to appear.

[~][~]


	23. Trigon, Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Titans continue their efforts to stop Trigon and his chief acolyte, Brother Blood.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 17: Trigon, Part 2 **

[~][~]

Donna Troy’s knuckles were bone-white as she tightly gripped the Invisible Jet’s controls. She was going as fast as the jet could physically take her, the engines whining from the strain, but still Donna wished to go faster. Her friends were in danger, and the last thing she heard from them before their radios cut off was the sound of an explosion. Neither she nor the rest of the League could reestablish contact with them, and she was fearing the worst.

The fact that, a few minutes ago, the Watchtower was suddenly bombarded with a DDoS attack, halting it in its tracks and disabling its systems, only added to the feeling of dread.

“ _Watchtower to Titans, do you read?!_ ” Mister Terrific shouted into the radio, Donna keyed to the same frequency. When her friends didn’t respond, Donna’s grip tightened ever more, and she forced the plane to go just a little bit faster.

“ _Donna, you need to ease up on the engines. You’re pushing them into the red,_ ” Diana advised her.

“Those are my friends, Diana,” Donna countered, “and they’re in trouble.”

“ _You won’t be able to help them if you crash._ ”

“I won’t be able to help them at all if they’re _dead_ by the time I get there!”

Diana didn’t respond to Donna’s statement, and the Wonder Girl took it as a tacit approval to continue her present course. Her eyes briefly drifted towards her sword and shield, knowing that soon they would come into use, then returned her attention onto the horizon. Donna was getting close to Jump City, and soon she would be able to see it.

“Hera’s mercy…” Donna whispered as she saw the top of Titans Tower appear over the horizon. From what little she could see beyond the bright purple magical shield encasing it, her home was in complete ruins. Half of it had collapsed into rubble, and the other was barely standing. But what was most concerning to her, however, was the fact that the shield was up to begin with. That shield was only meant to be used under one circumstance: the event of Trigon managing to possess Raven.

“ _Donna? Donna, what do you see?_ ”

Donna fought back the tears and swallowed. “It’s… It’s Trigon. He’s possessed Raven.”

Donna could feel her sister’s horror through the radio despite her not responding. Then, as Donna drew closer, she heard Mister Terrific’s voice sound through.

“ _Wonder Girl, I advise you to stay clear of Titans Tower,_ ” he began. “ _The Watchtower is almost operational, and once it is, we’re using the Ion Cannon._ ”

“What? But that would—”

“ _I know!_ ” Mister Terrific interrupted, shame filling his voice. “ _But right now, I have to assume the worst._ ”

Donna felt her heartrate quicken as Mister Terrific relayed the plan over. With wide eyes, she stared out over the horizon, seeing more of the city with each passing second. Fires were breaking out everywhere, and police reports were coming in detailing how heavily armed mercenaries were engaging in open warfare against the police and hastily mobilized national guard. Then, she returned her attention back to Titans Tower, and suddenly felt a thought burst into her mind.

“Wait! Belay that order!” Donna ordered. “The shield is still up!”

“ _I fail to see how—”_

“It means that Trigon hasn’t won yet!” Donna insisted. “There’s still a chance for them to turn things around, and if you fire that cannon down on them, all you’ll be doing is killing them!”

The other line went silent as they contemplated her words. Even though Donna couldn’t see her friends, she knew that they were still alive. She could feel it in her bones, and the shield still being up was all the proof she needed. Finally, after a pregnant pause, Mister Terrific responded.

“ _… Alright,_ ” he relented, a hint of relief entering his voice. He clearly didn’t want to fire the cannon to begin with, knowing the odds of the Titans and RWBYJNPR surviving it were low, so the possibility of them still being alive was a welcome thought.

“ _But,_ ” he continued, “ _if that shield drops and no one responds, we will assume the worst and open fire._ ”

Donna thought it over, then nodded. “I understand, but it won’t come to that.”

“ _For everyone’s sake, I hope to God you’re right. Watchtower out._ ”

Mister Terrific’s voice cut off as the other line shut down. Donna, taking a deep breath, removed her headset and placed it on the co-pilot’s seat. She then activated the autopilot, stepping away from the controls and heading back into the cabin. She didn’t have the time to fully change into her combat attire before the line went dead, and she was so focused on getting to Jump City, she hadn’t taken the time to fully change. Given how she was rapidly approaching the west coast city, now was as good a time as any.

As she strapped on her boots and put herself into her cuirass, she couldn’t help but glance out of the invisible walls of the jet. It would only be a few more minutes before she would arrive at Titans Tower, but she didn’t know what would happen after that.

“So do I,” she quietly admitted.

* * *

 

When Ruby stepped through the last portal, she knew that whatever greeted her would not be pleasant. The effects of a literal demon god forcibly taking over someone’s mind could never be anything remotely like that. Still, when she finally saw what greeted her, she was appalled and horrified. Trigon’s corruption, which had been spreading through Raven’s mind throughout her time here, was concentrated to ludicrous degrees. Rivers of molten magma crisscrossed the mental landscape. Dried husks of what was once trees lay shriveled under a blood-red sky. Rather than being barren, the rocks were covered in a red fungus-like membrane that squished under her boots.

“My god…” Beast Boy breathed out, horrified.

“It’s like she’s being terraformed…” M’gann pointed out. Both Ruby and Beast Boy found the description appropriate. More squelches announced the rest of the Emoticlones arriving behind them, the portal shutting off and crumbling to dust once the last arrived. Ruby frowned, knowing that meant their only avenue for escape was just closed off to them.

A red flash went off in front of them, illuminating a dark silhouette of a titanic form. Ruby recognized it as the body of Trigon. He was so large, she couldn’t even see his face, only the bottom of his knees. She felt small and insignificant compared to him, but she then heard someone scream. It sounded feminine, and there was only one person she could think of that would scream like that.

Without a second thought, M’gann grabbed hold of Ruby and began to fly them up towards the screams. Behind them, Beast Boy turned himself into a bird, momentarily wobbling as he took flight, and the Emoticlones followed suit. They ascended through the clouds, red lightning flashing all around them. Each was accompanied by a boom, loud enough that Ruby felt she was going to go deaf. Still, after a few minutes of flight, they broke the cloud cover and saw a floating stone platform.

Beast Boy recognized it as the very same platform he had seen Raven meditating at just an hour prior. Its once pristine white-stone architecture was shattered, blackened by ash and soot. The floating spiral staircase was gone, turned into floating rubble. Steeling himself, he and the others continued flying up to the top, where they finally saw Raven. Beast Boy’s heart sank as he saw her condition. Thick chains were attached to her arms and legs, immobilizing her to tall pillars that stretched further into the clouds. Her purple cloak was torn and tattered, and they could see burns along her wrists and ankles.

“…azarath…metrion…zinthos…” she chanted, her eyes tightly closed. “…azarath…metrion…zin-AAAGH!”

Raven suddenly screamed in agony as red magic pulsed through the chains and coursed through her body. She screamed and thrashed, trying to do anything to stop it, but nothing was working.

“ _Oh, daughter,_ ” a deep, booming voice sounded, heralded by a red flash that illuminated Trigon’s head for a moment. Almost as soon as it appeared, it was gone, leaving behind only the dark red glow of his eyes. “ _Why do you continue to resist? Why do you make me do this to you?_ ”

Raven breathed heavily, regaining her bearings, then tilted her head towards Trigons’ eyes and glared into them defiantly. “Azarath…Metrion…Zinthos.”

Trigon chuckled, then sent more magic coursing into Raven’s body. She screamed, and Ruby could no longer find it within herself to sit back and just watch. Leaping from M’gann’s arms, she unfolded her cape and turned it into a glider. Using her Semblance, she sped towards the nearest chain and flipped, unfolding Crescent Rose and swinging it downwards with all of her body’s momentum. The scythe made contact, but instead of cutting through like she had hoped, it simply bounced off. The thick iron chains sported no visible damage, while Ruby noted a small chink in Crescent Rose’s blade.

Distracted, Ruby was almost unable to dodge an ocular blast from Trigon, turning herself into roses at the last second. A thick pillar was shattered as the magical attacks made contact, sending shards of rubble flying in all directions.

“ _There you are…_ ” Trigon bellowed.

“Ru…Ruby?” Raven weakly got out, her head wobbling.

“Hey, Raven,” Ruby greeted, holding out Crescent Rose with one hand behind her back. “Sit tight, we’ll get you out of there.”

“We…?” Raven slowly turned her head to see M’gann and Beast Boy flying towards her. Her eyes widened slightly at the sight of them. “Garfield…?”

Before Beast Boy could even say anything to her, Raven’s eyes rolled into the back of her head and she slumped forward. They all felt the air shift as it suddenly grew hotter. The air began to warp from the heat, and the cloud of ash around them began to churn and glow red-hot. A booming laughter echoed from the void, and soon the clouds disappeared. Slowly, in disbelief, Ruby turned her head up to face the terrifying visage of Trigon.

The word ‘titanic’ barely described him adequately. His skin was a dark blood red, with black lines reminiscent of tattoos crossing his arms and torso. A pair of large horns, each black as night that heavily contrasted with his long, bone-white hair, came out of his forehead like a crown. He was shirtless, only wearing a pair of black iron gauntlets and a black half-cuirass that barely covered his stomach and the tops of his legs. They, themselves, were double-jointed like those of a goat, and although she couldn’t see them, Ruby imagined that they ended in cloven feet. His eyes were no longer glowing red, and instead were an unnerving pale. There were no irises, no pupils, simply a blank sclera that promised only malice and unimaginable cruelty.

Ruby then whipped Crescent Rose around, aimed, and fired at Trigon’s face. The bullet did nothing, other than make her feel good. Trigon didn’t react to the blow at first, then slowly smiled to reveal his large fangs. He chuckled, each sound vibrating Ruby’s bones. She felt like jelly but forced herself to stay upright. Then, loading another round into Crescent Rose, she aimed at Trigon’s head once again.

“Get. Out.” Ruby ordered with as much conviction as she could muster. Trigon laughed uproariously at her demand, leaning down to where his face was eye-level with Ruby’s. This allowed for her to feel his hot breath, and she grimaced at the foul odor that spewed from his mouth. It smelled of death and decay, of burnt flesh and rotten corpses. Briefly, Ruby’s mind traveled back to that first day of Brainiac’s invasion, but quickly pulled herself out of it and steeled her expression. Behind her, M’gann and Beast Boy held out their fists defiantly, showing they were ready for a fight.

Rather than appear annoyed or angered, Trigon merely laughed.

“ ** _HAHAHA!_ ” **Trigon bellowed. “ ** _SUCH YOUTHFUL ARROGANCE, THINKING THAT YOU HAVE A CHANCE OF SAVING YOUR FRIEND. YOUR LOYALTY TO MY OFFSPRING WOULD BE ADMIRABLE, WERE IT NOT SO FOOLISH._** ”

“Trying to save a friend is not foolish!” Ruby protested, remembering how such an act led to her, her team, and team JNPR escaping Remnant’s destruction.

“ ** _IS IT, EVEN WHEN IT MEANS YOUR OWN DEATH?_** ”

Immediately after he spoke, Trigon’s hand was raised high above his head. Then, he slammed it down with the force of a meteor, his house-sized fist slamming through the rock and shattering it. Ruby shrieked as she was blown away by the force, carried away by a green pterodactyl. M’gann had turned herself intangible, allowing Trigon’s hand to phase right through her, but even still her body reacted negatively to the heat his body exhumed. As soon as she was free from the confines of his flesh, she turned tangible once again and quickly scanned her immediate surroundings, trying to find Raven. She quickly found her, held in place by iron chains attached to floating orbs of red magic.

“Raven!” M’gann shouted as she flew towards her immobilized friend, only to recoil back as a red beam of magic struck her chest. She flew black, shattering one of the few remaining pillars that were stretched deep into the void below, and shook her head once she was able to regain her bearings. M’gann looked forward, expecting to see Trigon’s face, only to instead see a red-cloaked Raven glaring at her with four glowing red eyes.

“I take it you’re Rage?” M’gann rhetorically asked. Rage answered by screaming at the top of her lungs, forming a dark red astral projection of a flaming raven behind her. A dark, pulsing aura was surrounding her, and dark veins crisscrossed Rage’s face. Knowing that the red Emoticlone was in no mood for discussion, M’gann flew away at high speed, with Rage close behind.

Below her, far beneath the clouds, a breathless Beast Boy lowered Ruby to the rocky ground. Rivers of magma swirled around them, making it hard for Ruby to breathe and the rock hot to the touch. The Red Reaper then reached into her pouch and pulled out a rebreather, gasping for air once she strapped it to her face. She heard a cough and looked towards Beast Boy in worry. He was clutching his chest wound, but before Ruby could even attempt to help him, he raised his hand and held her back.

“I’m fine, just a little winded,” he admitted, then looked at the hellscape that surrounded them. His face held a look that combined sorrow and rage in equal measure, as well as discomfort from the hot air. “Uggh, it smells like sulfur.”

“Are you okay? Do you need a rebreather?”

“Don’t worry about me,” Beast Boy repeated a little forcibly, causing Ruby to purse her lips. He was obviously toning down how injured he was, and from the sag of his shoulders and the paleness beginning to enter his green skin, he was running on fumes. Doctor Light’s attack had done a number on him, and it was a miracle he was still standing.

They then heard a low rumble come from around them. The two teenagers whipped around, Ruby holding Crescent Rose out in front of her, and saw that they were surrounded by a sea of black and white. Grimm, hundreds of them, glared with red, hungry eyes. Their maws were opening and closing, clicking their teeth together, and Ruby admittedly felt a chill run down her spine.

“Alright… You take the hundred on the left, I’ll take the hundred on the right,” Ruby said.

“Heh, I’ll take a hundred-and-one,” Beast Boy playfully countered, and Ruby smiled.

“That’s the spirit.”

Then, without saying another word, Ruby fired her sniper rifle at the head of the closest Grimm. The Creep’s head exploded in a cloud of black gore, as did the stomach of the Beowolf behind it, the bodies disintegrating soon afterwards. As though it were a signal, the Grimm horde roared at the top of their lungs and charged at Ruby and Beast Boy. Ruby fired Crescent Rose as long as she could, a cacophony of gunfire filling their air. Each shot landed true, exploding the heads of Ursas, Beowolves, and Creeps, but when the horde finally closed in, Ruby sprang up as a cloud of roses. She reformed herself at the top of her arc, her cape billowing outwards like a parachute to slow her descent, then spun in a circle. Ruby fired her weapon at each instant, hitting multiple targets with each pass, and when her body almost reached the ground, she reconfigured Crescent Rose into its scythe mode. She swung the blade in a mighty arc, decapitating multiple Grimm at once and leaving her significant breathing room.

As Ruby quickly sped towards the nearest Grimm, using Crescent Rose as a war scythe, Beast Boy was charging through the horde as a large green mastodon. He crushed Grimm underfoot, impaled yet more with his mighty tusks. He had a Creep wrapped tightly in his trunk, and he squeezed the life out of it. Beast Boy refused to let go until the creature was dust in the wind, then moved on to the next. He felt a couple of Grimm leap onto the top of his body, and he shook to try and throw them off. Most did, but one managed to keep hold and sink its fangs into Beast Boy’s hide. He roared in pain, then shifted himself into an ankylosaur just as the Grimm tried to bite again. This time, its fangs broke against his osteoderm-covered hide. He swung his tail-club into the creature, crushing it along his back, then swung his tail the other way. The blunt weapon slammed into a group of Grimm, shattering their bones and rupturing their internal organs. Then, turning himself into a tyrannosaurus rex, Beast Boy snapped his jaws shut on an Ursa Major, shredding it with his banana-sized teeth, and roared out a challenge to the rest of the Grimm

The mindless creatures, enhanced by Trigon’s magic, eagerly answered it, and charged with a fearless vigor.

Above them, M’gann dueled against Raven’s Rage Emoticlone. The White Martian grappled with Rage, holding her tightly with one arm while repeatedly punching Rage’s face with the other.

“Go to sleep! Go to sleep! Go to sleep!” M’gann chanted, but Rage merely shook it off and violently kicked M’gann away, her foot covered in a red magical aura. As M’gann flew back, Rage gathered magic in between her hands, then fired a focused beam towards Miss Martian. M’gann banked hard, the end of her cape singeing from the heat of the attack, and stared hard at her unfortunate enemy. Her eyes glowed bright white, then turned red as twin beams of heat shot out and struck Rage in the chest. M’gann flew forward, continuing to fire her Martian Vision until she plowed into Rage in an aerial tackle. They continued flying through several pillars, shattering them one by one until Rage felt woozy. Taking advantage of her opponent’s current state, M’gann punched the red Emoticlone repeatedly in the gut then grabbed her head to bring it down to her rising knee. As Rage recoiled, M’gann punched her in the face again, then hurled her over her shoulder into the black mass below.

M’gann looked down to see if Rage showed any signs of activity, but she saw only Grimm. Her brother and Ruby were handling themselves well, killing the abominations left and right, but she couldn’t help but notice how the particles emitting from the freshly slain Grimm were coalescing at the far end of their current platform into new creatures. She realized that Raven’s Knowledge was right. These Grimm were merely copies of the original, ones that were being held somewhere in her city.

But she couldn’t focus on that right now. Instead, she flew back up towards where she last saw Raven – the real Raven – and found her being surrounded by her other Emoticlones. They were simultaneously trying to repair the damage Trigon had wrought on her while defending themselves from his own attacks. The sphere of magic they had constructed around themselves was shaking and cracking under each of Trigon’s heavy blows, whether they be from fist or magic. Seeing another crack form, M’gann frowned and flew straight towards the demon. A sonic boom went off as she broke the sound barrier, and she felt a stretching sensation all across her body. Trigon barely had time to look before a giant-sized Miss Martian threw a mighty punch into his face, causing him to stagger and clutch his nose.

“In case you’ve forgotten, jerk wad,” M’gann taunted, resting her foot on the ground – incidentally, crushing dozens of Grimm underfoot – and cracking her knuckles, “I have complete control over my body’s molecular structure. How does it feel to pick on someone your own size?”

Trigon, recovering from the unexpected blow, said nothing at first. Then, throwing his arms back, he roared and fired four beams of red-hot magic at Miss Martian. M’gann turned intangible, allowing the attacks to phase straight through her with no issue. When she turned tangible again, Trigon followed up the attack with a punch to her jaw, spinning her around. M’gann recovered and spun back, retaliating with a punch of her own, and the two giants descended into a chaotic melee. Now safe behind their shield, the Emoticlones continued their work, sending soothing magic into Raven’s body while healing her wounds.

“There, there,” Passion soothed, rubbing Raven’s head. Her progenitor was currently unconscious, but Passion knew that the gesture was still felt and appreciated.

“Yo!” Bravery announced as she flew back up, holding a tightly bound Rage in her arms. “I got her!”

“Good, bring her here,” Knowledge ordered. “Unless we can remove father’s corruption from Raven’s Rage, none of this will work.”

Sloth burped and rubbed her mouth. “Like, we already know that. Why tell us again?”

“Because you slept through the last time she told us!” Rudeness chastised.

“Not my fault she was so boring…”

“Focus, both of you,” Knowledge interjected. The two bickering Emoticlones quickly refocused on the task at hand, along with the other Emoticlones. While the majority focused on Raven herself, Timid and Joy sent their own magic into the thrashing Rage.

“Oh man! He’s really gotten you all wound up!” Joy exclaimed through a toothy smile, somehow finding enjoyment during this process.

“ _Ragh!!!_ ” Rage roared into Joy’s face, who immediately brushed it off.

“Just as lively as ever!”

Timid said nothing as she shakily sent her magic into Rage’s body. The thought was that the dual emotions would serve as a natural counterbalance to Trigon’s immense rage. Although the difference was subtle, she could sense that they were beginning to make an impact. Still, as she looked down at the battle before them, she couldn’t help but feel scared for her friends.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, then went back to work.

Back on the ground, Ruby and Beast Boy were in the fight of their lives. The Red Reaper had long since run out of bullets, and was forced to resort to melee only. But this suited Ruby just fine as she flew back and forth, swiping Crescent Rose wherever she went. One Beowolf attempted to lunge at her, only for Ruby to jump overhead and swing her scythe in a vertical spin, bisecting the creature from end to end. She then had to quickly burst back as one of M’gann’s house-sized feet crashed into the ground where she stood only moments earlier. Ruby stared up in awe as her friend fought against Trigon, matching him blow for blow. Then, she heard a yell and shot her attention to Beast Boy.

Her friend had turned himself into a stegosaurus, swinging his tail back and forth. The thagomizers on his tail were impaled into Grimm, some of which futilely clawed at them in an attempt to free themselves before expiring, but there were too many of them. Beast Boy, unprotected by the Aura Ruby herself was running dangerously low on, now sported several gashes along his hide. Red blood was oozing out of the wounds, and his breathing was labored. Coming to a decision near instantly, Ruby shot forward and struck a Beowolf that had maneuvered itself to a safe position along Beast Boy’s spinal plates, preparing to bite down into his flesh. Ruby speared it off of Beast Boy, pole vaulting off of it as they crashed into the ground, then swung her weapon vertically as she landed. She slammed the blunt end of her weapon into another Grimm’s head, crushing it like a melon, then ducked as a Creep lunged for her head. As it soared over her, she looped her weapon around and sliced it in half before proceeding to flow into a dance of swirling petals and blades. Any Grimm that got too close were shredded, allowing Beast Boy time to recover. He turned himself into a brachiosaur, whipping his giant tail and slapping the Grimm with supersonic strikes. Finally, the horde began to thin, and Beast Boy turned himself back to his human appearance.

“Garfield!” Ruby exclaimed as she saw him lean against a rock. He was covered in cuts and bruises, trickles of blood running down his head and arms. The more minor injuries were being healed before Ruby’s very eyes, much to her astonishment, but the more serious ones were healing much more slowly.

“I…” he said, breathing heavily, “I don’t know how much more of this I can take.”

Ruby frowned at his admission, but at the same time understood where he was coming from. He was already injured before entering Raven’s mind, and the hectic combat couldn’t be good for his body. Another roar cut off her thoughts, and she patted Beast Boy’s shoulder.

“Got a few more in ya?” she asked, and Beast Boy nodded.

“Let’s kick their asses,” Beast Boy emphatically proclaimed as he turned to face the ongoing horde. He bared his teeth and ran forward, stumbling the first few steps but quickly gaining confidence. Then, when he reached his top speed, he turned himself into a triceratops, angling his head down and his three horns forward. He gored and plowed into several Grimm at once, crushing yet more under his massive bulk. Ruby stood on top of him, keeping the Grimm from jumping on top of her friend while using her weapon’s war scythe configuration as a lance. They worked as one, forming a cloud of dark particles that swirled around them. Ruby couldn’t help but smile confidently as she quickly spun her blade around to decapitate a lunging Beowolf, followed by spearing an Ursa in its open maw.

Their attention focused on the Grimm, they didn’t notice M’gann’s foot slamming into the ground until it was right in front of them. Beast Boy dug in his heels in a desperate attempt to stop his momentum, but inertia carried them forward until they slammed into her red boot. Ruby flew off of Beast Boy in a flail, trying to right herself in midair, while Beast Boy rebounded back. His body returned to its normal form, and he laid on his back groaning for a few moments. When he heard Grimm approaching, he quickly shot back up to his feet, only to wobble for a bit. His chest hurt, and he winced in pain while nursing it with his hand.

Still, as the first Grimm neared, he snarled and turned himself into a gorilla to pound its head into dust. As another neared, he grabbed it and used its body as a mace, slamming it repeatedly into one abomination after another until its body disintegrated. More Grimm piled onto him, and he punched and kicked his way to freedom before turning himself into an eagle and flying upwards. From his vantage point, he was able to see more of the battle.

M’gann was losing ground, Trigon hurling powerful blows into her body. She was desperately shielding her chest and face from the demon’s wrath, but she was unable to shake his blows to her side. He was forcing her against the magical shield the Emoticlones had constructed around themselves, the shield buckling under the added weight. The only consolation he could see was that Rage was visibly less corrupted, but that didn’t mean much if Trigon managed to get to them first. If he did, the last remains of Raven’s individuality would vanish.

Below him, he could see Ruby fighting off several Grimm at once. She was moving in a blur of rose petals, swinging Crescent Rose at every moment. Multiple Grimm were cut down at each swing, but there were too many. Several managed to land blows on her, and for a moment he saw her Aura flicker dangerously.

As Trigon’s heavy footsteps boomed, he felt a sense of rage overtake him. How dare Trigon barge into their lives and try to subvert Raven for his own ends? How dare he hurt his friends? How dare he ruin the lives of so many innocent people, just so he could conquer the Earth for no real reason?!

“Aagh!” he heard Ruby scream, and Beast Boy watched as an Ursa managed to rip Crescent Rose away from her. As it prowled towards her, Beast Boy saw red, and he flew down towards them both. He felt his consciousness stretch and split as he, to his astonishment, turned from a single eagle into a swarm of wasps. As a cloud of insects, he swarmed the Grimm and stabbed it thousands of times with his stingers, biting into its furry hide with his mandibles. The creature thrashed, trying to shake the swarm off, allowing Ruby the chance to recover her weapon and swing her blade down into its head, killing it instantly. As the body dissolved into dust, Ruby saw as the swarm calmed and coalesced into Beast Boy. To Ruby’s astonishment, his green skin had turned a deep red, but quickly returned to normal.

Then, Beast Boy’s eyes rolled to the back of his head as he fell forward. Ruby caught him in her arms and slowly lowered him to the ground. She then heard more roars and growls as the replenished Grimm horde charged towards her. Even without her scroll, Ruby could feel her Aura’s limits being stretched, yet still she stood tall in open defiance.

“ ** _HAHAHAH!_** ” she heard Trigon’s mocking laugh as he grabbed M’gann’s head and repeatedly punched it with bone-crushing force, yet his attention was squarely on her. “ ** _EVEN NOW, YOU STILL RESIST THE INEVITABLE AND HANG ON TO YOUR HOPE? YOU TRULY ARE A BLIND, NAÏVE CHILD._ ”**

“So what?!” Ruby challenged. “So what if I still have hope?! That hope has carried us this far, and it hasn’t failed us yet! The Titans beat you on that hope before, and we’ll beat you with it now!”

“ ** _YOUR PRECIOUS ALLIES ARE ALREADY LYING BEATEN AND BROKEN!_** ” Trigon revealed, much to Ruby’s shock. Seeing her crestfallen expression, Trigon smiled wickedly. “ ** _YES, WHILE YOU, THE MARTIAN, AND THE CHANGELING TRAVERSED MY DAUGHTER’S MIND, I MADE YOUR FRIENDS INTO MY PLAYTHINGS. THEIR SCREAMS WERE SUCCULENT._** ”

Ruby stared at Trigon for a moment, then felt an unending rage boil from within her. With a piercing scream, she slashed apart a nearby Grimm then charged forward, carving a path straight towards the demon. Everything became a blur to her, a sea of black broken by red, until she finally reached his hoof. Pointing Crescent Rose forward like a spear, she roared as she plunged the blade deep into his leg until her own hand meeting his flesh stopped her. She didn’t have time to fully process what she did when Trigon’s foot violently kicked her away. Ruby screamed as her body flew back, crashing into a pillar of rock and shattering it along with the last remains of her Aura.

“ ** _HMM,_** ” Trigon grunted as he socked M’gann across the jaw, causing her body to topple over. Leaning down, he carefully removed Crescent Rose from his body, holding it in the palm of his hand like a toothpick. He studied it, then smiled. “ ** _AN INTERESTING DESIGN. YOU PUT A LOT OF WORK INTO THIS WEAPON, DIDN’T YOU?_** ”

Ruby didn’t deign him with an answer as she pushed herself to her feet, glaring at him in open defiance. Taking that as her answer, Trigon smiled evilly, then quickly closed his hand. There was a crunching noise, and Ruby’s heart sank as she saw the shattered pieces of her weapon falling to the ground.

“No…” Ruby mumbled under her breath, yet Trigon still heard her. Smiling, he grabbed M’gann’s prone form and began to drag her to the sea of magma boiling around them.

“ ** _DON’T FRET,_** ” Trigon said just as M’gann regained consciousness. To her horror, she saw that Trigon was trying to plunge her head into the magma, and so she desperately pushed her body upwards from the rock as Trigon playfully pushed her down. _“ **YOU WON’T DIE JUST YET. ONLY ONCE YOUR FRIENDS HAVE SUFFERED ENOUGH WILL I GRANT YOU THAT MERCY.**_ ”

Ruby could only watch helplessly as Trigon continued to push M’gann closer and closer to the magma. Her bruised, green skin was turning white as her psychosomatic pyrophobia was beginning to kick in, yet Ruby remained still. Behind her, she heard the Grimm converge on Beast Boy, whom she just realized she had left undefended in her bid to futilely strike back at Trigon. Above her, Trigon’s simultaneous magical blasts were weakening the shield surrounding Raven and the Emoticlones, and with the sound of breaking glass, the shield shattered. Trigon laughed victoriously as he kicked M’gann away, looming over Raven as he prepared to destroy the last vestiges of her as a person.

Her mind raced as she tried to contemplate what was happening. This wasn’t supposed to happen. None of it was. As Trigon’s hand slowly reached for Raven, threatening to end the life of someone she held dear, something within Ruby snapped.

_Compan…plus un…joy…lo…_

“NO!!!!” Ruby screamed as her eyes glowed silvery white. A great white light poured from them, sweeping over everything in its path like a pair of majestic wings as everyone turned to face the unexpected development. Grimm caught in the light turned to stone and crumbled as Trigon’s eyes widened.

“ ** _WHAT?!_** ” Trigon yelled in shock and confusion before he, too, was consumed. Then, he began to scream in utter agony.

* * *

 

“ _AAAGH!_ ” Trigon suddenly screamed, causing Raven’s body to fall to her knees and halt her breaking of the Titans’ barrier around their island. The bonds holding the teenage heroes were broken, and for a moment they were confused. After regaining their bearings, the ones who could stand looked over to Raven, where they saw a bright light escaping from her eyes and mouth. Their friend was screaming shrilly, but they could hear far more of Trigon than Raven herself.

“Yeah! Kick his ass, guys!” Jaune cheered out, realizing what was going on. A moment later, the others too realized what was going on, at least in the general concept. Whatever Ruby, M’gann, and Beast Boy were doing to try and save Raven from inside her mind – Jaune still didn’t quite understand _how_ that was even possible, nor what it exactly entailed – was clearly working. They were forcing him out, and that meant this nightmare would soon end.

Still, Nightwing wasn’t content with only watching. Fighting through the pain wracking his body, he shot to his feet and sprinted towards Raven, pulling a bolo from his utility belt. He hurled it at Raven, the weighted cords wrapping themselves tightly around Raven’s torso and pinning her arms to her chest. He saw Weiss form an Nth Metal infused Glyph, which increased the pull of gravity around her and glued her knees to the ground. Rather than respond, Raven’s body continued to scream, and the light intensified.

Not to be outdone, Cyborg shot forward and fired binding cuffs at her ankles, which attached themselves to her body and subsequently drilled into the rocky ground. Starfire, ignoring the effects of Weiss’ Glyph, flew in and grabbed hold of Raven’s shaking body, pinning her with all her strength.

“Please, friend Raven! Fight him!” Starfire begged, holding Raven’s body as the thrashing intensified. The light brightened even further, becoming almost blinding, then it suddenly stopped. A sense of dread began to fill them once more, only to be replaced with immeasurable relief as a dark red gas was jettisoned from Raven’s gaping mouth. The heroes could sense the evil coming from it, and so with a murderous expression, Starfire fired the largest beam of concentrated ultraviolet light into its center of mass that she could. The evil entity thrashed and tried to escape, only for Cyborg to join in with his sonic cannon. Weiss, after releasing the Glyph holding Raven down, constructed another on the entity’s back, immobilizing it. With a snarl, she then constructed a series of blank platforms, allowing Nightwing the opportunity to grab his fallen Nth Metal knife, charge up the platforms like a staircase, and plunge the weapon into its incorporeal heart while screaming at the top of his lungs.

As the blade made contact, the entity shrieked, then went still. Slowly, the entity dissolved into nothing as it ceased to exist, and once it was fully gone they immediately saw the effects. The sea of magma surrounding Titans Tower returned to clear sea water, the dark clouds hanging overhead completely dissipating. The blood-red sky returned to a clear blue hue, and they again felt the Sun’s rays beam down on them. The heroes looked over it all with awe and wonder, relief flooding their bones.

Nightwing suddenly felt a little woozy and wobbled on top of the final platform, only for Starfire to fly up and gently catch him. With tears in her eyes, she wiped away a bit of the dried blood on his brow, then gave him a searing kiss that was filled with relief that this was finally over. Nightwing returned it, but the public display of affection only lasted a moment before they broke apart and Starfire gently flew them both down to the ground. There they saw the other heroes, the ones still standing, crowding around an immobile Raven. Tentatively, the two walked over to her and saw that Weiss and Cyborg were already crouching over her, Victor running his diagnostics over her body.

“What does it say?” Nightwing asked, and Cyborg looked back up at him with a smile.

“Trigon… He’s gone! I don’t know what they did, but he’s been ejected from her body!” Cyborg announced, and Nightwing didn’t even try to stop the smile from breaking out across his face. A quick glace at Raven’s body told him that Cyborg was correct. Her demonic appearance had quickly receded. Gone were her horns, red skin, and extra pair of eyes. Instead, Raven looked exactly as she normally did, only her grey skin did look a little sunburnt. Her eyes were still closed, however, but her breathing was calm.

“How is she?” Jaune asked. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the rest of his team and team RWBY struggle to rise to their feet. Nora was using Magnhild as a crutch, holding Ren aloft with her other arm, while Pyrrha was leaning against a tilting pillar of concrete. Yang and Blake were holding onto each other for support as they slowly made their way over, and soon everyone gathered around their fallen teammate. Exhaustion was settling in on all of them, and their breathing was heavy.

“Raven’s vitals are stabilizing, and she’s just sleeping,” Cyborg revealed.

“Can’t say I blame her,” Yang admitted. “Girl’s been through a lot.”

The others nodded, then redirected their attention back onto Raven. They wondered just how long she would remain sleeping, only for her body to suddenly stir. With bated breath, they saw their friend slowly rouse from her slumber, scrunching her eyes together before slowly opening them. Raven looked around at her friends, her vision first blurry then slowly coming back into focus. Her mouth was dry, and her muscles ached, but found that she and she alone could control their movements. Without saying a word, she looked back up at the relieved faces of her friends, and watched as they carefully removed the restraints they had placed around her. They stepped back as Raven struggled to her feet, momentarily collapsing only for her friends to catch her. Once she was fully stabilized, she looked back out at her friends and tried to speak, only she couldn’t find the words. The impact of what had just occurred finally caught up to the half-demon, the things she was forced to do to her friends, the pain she subjected them to, and how she was unable stop herself despite all attempts to. Hot tears began to swell in her eyes as she lunged forward and grasped the closest person she could in a tight hug. It turned out to be Nightwing, who quickly wrapped her in an equally tight hug as the young girl sobbed.

“I’m sorry… I’m so, so sorry…” Raven apologized through the sobs, her body shaking with each cry. She felt the other Titans surround her, wrapping her in a comforting embrace as they all cried tears of both sadness and relief. At first, the Remnantians remained distant, wanting to give the Titans their moment, only for Starfire to direct them to join in. Both teams did so, joining the group hug as they all comforted each other. Then, after a few moments, Raven’s sobs slowly ceased, and only then did they break apart. Raven’s eyes were red from the tears, and as she wiped a trail of snot running from her nose, she looked at Cyborg.

“Victor, could you get the mirror, please?” she quietly asked, and Cyborg nodded. He made his way over to the rubble, combing through it with his scanners until he found the small handheld object buried in rubble. He threw heavy debris off to the side, then reached down and grabbed the item gently. Looking at its condition, he winced and made his way back to Raven.

“The glass is completely shattered,” he said as he handed the mirror to Raven.

“Not a problem,” she replied as she calmly swirled her hands over the small mirror. The glass quickly repaired itself, each fracture disappearing with a cracking noise, and soon the object was in pristine condition. Without saying a word, Raven held the mirror out in front of her and waited. Then, the mirror shined bright as the magic opened a portal into Raven’s mind. They saw three figures emerge from it, and to their relief found it to be M’gann, Beast Boy, and Ruby. That relief turned into surprise as they saw that both Ruby and Beast Boy were unconscious, being held by a heavily damaged M’gann.

“Ruby!” Yang shouted as she tried to run towards her fallen sister, only to stumble and nearly fall.

“What happened?” Weiss asked as M’gann gently lowered both youngsters to the ground. The White Martian then turned to face the group, a look of shock and surprise etched on her face.

“I… I don’t even know,” she admitted. “We got in and found Raven, only to find Trigon there, too. Backed by an army of Grimm.”

“Wait, Grimm? As in our Grimm?” Jaune asked, and M’gann nodded.

“How is that possible?” Ren asked.

“You guys were right. Brother Blood had been smuggling Grimm into the city, and Trigon was infusing them with his magic to create copies that he then projected into Raven’s mind. There were hundreds of them in there.”

“Does that mean there are hundreds of Grimm in Jump City, too?” Blake asked, but M’gann shook her head.

“No, at least that’s not what Raven’s Knowledge thought,” M’gann answered, and the Remnantians suddenly felt confused along with the other Titans. Seeing this, Raven sighed and rubbed her head, feeling a migraine coming on.

“Inside my mind are anthropomorphic avatars of my emotions. I meditate with them using that mirror to enter my mind. That’s how Ruby, Garfield, and M’gann got in.”

The others slowly digested this information, staring with wide eyes at Raven. The silence was heavy, then Nora coughed.

“Does that mean… _we_ have that, too?” Nora asked.

“Nora, I don’t think now is the time to ask that,” Pyrrha lightly chastised, even though she herself desperately wanted the answer to that question as well. Nora, however, was unashamed.

“What? I want to know if my head’s a living Pixar movie, and I think that’s a very pertinent question to ask.”

“Later, we can figure that out later,” Weiss cut in, pushing the matter aside for the moment. She would get an answer to that question, her natural curiosity refused to allow her to leave that subject to rest, then turned to face Miss Martian. “That white light… What was it? It was pouring out of Raven right before Trigon was kicked out of her body, and you were the only one there who could tell us what was going on.”

M’gann’s wide eyes stared at Weiss, then she slowly turned them to face Ruby. The others followed her gaze, and realization slowly built inside of them.

“Ruby…did something,” M’gann revealed, quietly. “Trigon was about to crush Raven’s Emoticlones—”

Raven groaned at the name Garfield had given her emotions, while Yang felt a jubilant smile break across her face at the sheer brilliance of the word, but allowed M’gann to continue.

“—and he tried to force me into a sea of magma. Beast Boy was unconscious, and Crescent Rose was shattered by Trigon. I thought we were done for when Ruby just…screamed. Next thing I know, her eyes started shining like crazy and this white wave just cascaded out from them. The Grimm inside Raven’s mind were completely destroyed by it and when it hit Trigon, he just started screaming in agony.”

“We heard that from out here,” Jaune revealed, shocked at what M’gann was telling them. M’gann nodded, then continued.

“Then…he was gone. Ruby ended up passing out after she did…whatever she did. Raven’s mind slowly returned to normal as the damage repaired itself, and that’s when you guys brought us back out.”

The others slowly digested her words as they stared at Ruby’s unconscious body. Surprise was etched across all of their faces, then a look of horror crossed Weiss’ face.

“He knew…” she realized. The others looked at her in confusion at first, only to quickly realize the exact same thing. “Brainiac knew that Ruby could do something with her eyes, that they were some kind of genetic anomaly. If what you’re saying is true, M’gann, then whatever Ruby just did is why Brainiac kidnapped her in the first place! He was trying to figure out how her eyes could do…that!”

With wide eyes, the other heroes looked down at Ruby once again. Everything Weiss just said made perfect sense, and it filled in so many holes regarding Brainiac’s actions. Her explanation was a perfect fit. Nightwing then frowned and stared back up at the magical barrier. He hadn’t yet closed it, and right now he had several teammates who were in desperate need of medical attention. He pressed a button, and the shield went down.

They were then immediately bombarded by radio hails.

“ _This is Officer Johnson on 4 th Street! I am in need of immediate assistance, over!_”

“ _Requesting backup on Henderson and Ditko! We are under heavy fire over here!_ ”

“ _We got snipers on Johns Avenue! Can someone, anyone, take those bastards out?!_ ”

“ _Guys, for the love of Hera and Aphrodite, pick up the gods damned phone!_ ” Donna Troy’s voice broke through the chatter. The Titans immediately honed in on her signal and blocked all other radio chatter.

“Donna? Donna, is that you?” Nightwing asked, they could hear the breath of relief coming from Donna.

“ _Finally! I’ve been here for the past thirty minutes, helping to fight off these blasted mercenaries!_ ” Donna revealed. They could barely make out the gunfire going off around her, yet she treated it as a minor inconvenience.

“ _How’s Raven?_ ” she asked.

“I’m fine, Donna,” Raven answered.

“ _Raven! You have no idea how happy I am to hear your voice._ ”

“I know,” Raven said, a faint smile on her face. She then became stoic once again, and calmly spoke. “Am I correct that the Watchtower is on this frequency?”

“ _We are, Titans. It’s good to hear from you again. We were beginning to fear the worst,_ ” Mr. Terrific announced, and Raven nodded. Left unsaid was that the Watchtower’s ion cannon was being shut down, but Raven didn’t need him to tell her that.

“Requesting immediate medevac from Titans Tower. Several of us are heavily injured, and both Red Reaper and Beast Boy are unconscious.”

“ _Javelins are en route as we speak._ ”

“Be advised, I am requesting that League specialists personally examine Red Reaper,” Nightwing cut in.

“ _Why?_ ” Mr. Terrific asked, worry leaking into his voice.

“There is a significant possibility that her eyes are magical in nature. She emitted some kind of wave from them inside Raven’s mind that not only banished Trigon from Raven’s body, it also destroyed the Grimm Trigon had planted within her. I repeat, the existence of Grimm on Earth is confirmed.”

“ _Christ on a-! Sending word now. I’m also sending in a League Task Force to bring in Brother Blood. We’ll—_ ”

“No!” Nightwing interrupted, clenching his fist. He quickly looked around, silently asking the ones still capable of fighting if they wanted him to continue, and they stoically nodded. “We have enough able-bodied Titans and Remnantians here take him in ourselves. After what that bastard did to Raven, he is _ours_.”

“ _I don’t think that—_ ”

“Either you let us go in and take him down, or we go anyway, Watchtower,” Nightwing coldly replied, and Mr. Terrific went silent. Then they heard a sigh, and the young heroes smiled.

“ _Request granted, but Superman is on standby just in case things go out of hand._ ”

“We can live with that. Donna, meet us at Titans Island in five minutes.”

“ _You got it,_ ” Donna replied, and Nightwing nodded.

“Titans, out,” Nightwing disconnected from the radio, and turned to face the other heroes. “Alright, who’s still capable?”

“I am,” Jaune said, stepping forward. “If there’s one thing I’m good at, it’s taking a hit.”

“I can, as well,” Weiss stated, and Nightwing nodded. He felt Starfire pat his shoulder in support, telling him that she was in. Yang and Nora moved to join in as well, only for Jaune and Weiss to stop them.

“No, the rest of you are too heavily injured,” Weiss stated, her tone leaving no room for argument. Yang looked angered by the accusation, but soon relented.

“Goddammit,” she cursed.

“Don’t worry, Yang. I’ll punch him in the face for you,” Jaune offered, and Yang looked at him.

“You better.”

Jaune nodded at Yang’s order, taking it in stride, then looked at the others. “Anyone else? Pyrrha?”

“I’m going to stay here and protect the others,” she answered.

“So am I,” Cyborg added. “My structural integrity’s shot to hell, and my weapons’ batteries are running low. Won’t be much use out there.”

“I’ll stay as well,” M’gann said with a wince. The heavy bruising across her body betrayed just how injured she really was, and Nightwing nodded incomplete understanding.

Nightwing, White Knight, Ivory Mage, Starfire, and Wonder Girl. That made five against a heavily fortified Blood Cathedral, filled with who knows how many mercenaries and cultists. The odds were clearly uneven, but the cultists would just have to deal with that.

“Alright, let’s get go—” Nightwing began, only for Raven to stand up and cut him off.

“If you think you can just leave to take Brother Blood down without me, you’ve got another thing coming,” she declared, clenching her fist and forming an orb of magic around her hand. Part of Nightwing wanted to protest, but he knew it would be pointless to even try. So instead he nodded and beckoned her to join them. They heard the sound of jets coming in and saw League Javelins break from the few scattered clouds, and left their injured friends just as their medevac touched down. They ran across the shattered remains of the bridge, their speed boosted by flight or careful usage of their grappling hooks, before finally meeting with Donna on the other side. She was busy beating back a small group of mercenaries who were attempting to hold the bridge, but they were having no such luck. Already they saw the shattered remains of an APC, its hull burning and spitting out black smoke, while other mercenaries were laying sprawled across the ground.

“AAAGH!” a cultist screamed as she fired her fully automatic rifle at Donna, only for the Amazonian princess to effortlessly block the gunfire with her shield while she herself charged forward. When she got close enough, the Wonder Girl slammed her shield into the rifle and knocked it out of the criminals hands, then slammed her fist hard into her opponent’s stomach. As she doubled over, Donna heard the cocking of another gun and raised her bracer to block the bullet. It ricocheted off with a loud ping, and the gunman continued to fire his pistol at her while she blocked each bullet with her bracers. When the gun finally clicked empty, she unfurled her Lasso of Persuasion and looped it around the criminal’s body.

“Hey there, buddy,” she said in a sweet and gentle tone. “Tie up all your friends for me.”

The cultist tried to resist, but soon felt his mind come around to Donna’s request. He rose to his feet and quickly tied up all of the unconscious criminals, and once he was done he turned to face Donna once again.

“Thanks,” Donna stated just before sucker punching the man in the face, spinning him around and causing him to faceplant into the concrete. Taking some rope from his gear, she tied him up and removed her lasso from his body, looped it back up, and clipped it to her hip.

“Donna,” she heard Jaune announce, and she smiled and turned to face her friends. She quickly found herself wrapped in one of Starfire’s famous hugs, and she laughed and hugged back.

“It’s good to see you too, Kori,” Donna laughed as they broke apart. The Amazon then turned serious as Nightwing came in, and Donna placed her hands on her hips. “I leave for one month, one month, and everything goes to hell. Literally. What gives?”

“What can I say, you’re a calming influence on us all,” Nightwing joked, and Donna couldn’t help but chuckle.

“You know it,” she said, then hugged the Titans leader. Seeing Raven, she moved to hug her as well, and to her slight surprise found that Raven didn’t try to stop her. The poor girl must be shaken from her ordeal, but Donna was proud Raven was still willing to fight.

“Come on, let’s go kick Blood’s ass,” Donna suggested, and Raven frowned as she stepped in front of them.

“Get in line.”

* * *

 

Brother Blood watched in horror as the Dark Ones roared in pain from inside their cages. One by one, their thrashing ceased, followed by a series of crackling noises. Something crumbled, hitting the floors of the cages with a dull thud, and then everything was quiet. With wide eyes, Brother Blood stared at the cages, wondering just what had happened. Slowly, he turned towards the nearest cage and looked at the sliding viewing port. His hand shaking, he tentatively reached out and grabbed the handle, then slid it back to peer inside. To his shock, he saw only shattered rock where the Dark One once stood. Beginning to panic, he checked the other cages, hoping that their plan wasn’t shot. One by one, he found the same result. Where once was a divine creature was lifeless stone.

“I… I don’t…” Blood began, unable to finish his sentence. He barely heard a flutter of steps as one of his acolytes barged into the chamber, only acknowledging her presence when she shouted his name for the fifth time.

“Father, we have a problem!” she announced, breaking Brother Blood out of his stupor. Trying to recompose himself, he turned to face the clearly panicked cultist.

“What is it, my child?” he asked, fighting to keep his face calm and composed.

“It’s the Titans!” the cultist revealed, and Blood’s mask broke. The cultist took it as permission, and she continued. “Their defenses have gone down, they’ve left their island entirely! They’re rallying the JPD and National Guard, and already we’ve lost most of our men!”

“I… I see,” Blood quietly replied, then straightened himself. “There’s no need to fret. The Allfather’s work on Raven will—”

“Raven is with them,” the cultist interrupted. “Under her own power. I don’t know how, but the Titans… They forced the Allfather out of her, and they’re on their way _here_. Father, what do we do?”

Brother Blood said nothing as he stared at the cultist in shock. Then a sense of sheer rage boiled from within him, and he lashed out and struck the woman across the face. She fell to the ground with a yelp, rubbing her cheek as she stared at him with fearful eyes. Yet Brother Blood did nothing more as he stormed off, making his way to Trigon’s Sanctum. He ignored his flock’s calls for aid, and instead zeroed in on the statue to Trigon. His pace only stopped when he noticed a shift in the statue’s condition. The last time he had seen it, the statue was in pristine condition, but now it looked burnt and vandalized. Cracks shot across the statue’s form, threatening to split it apart entirely.

“… My Lord?” Brother Blood quietly asked, only to jump back as the statue sprung to life. Flames danced around the statue, the air churning from an intense heat, and the statue roared with bone-rattling ferocity. Blood covered his ears, trying to block out the painful noise, only to feel his body being grasped and sharply pulled towards the statue by an invisible hand.

“Trigon, I don’t-!” Blood tried to say.

“ ** _SILENCE!_** ” Trigon ordered, shutting Blood up as the demon continued. “ ** _YOU WORTHLESS, INSIGNIFICANT WORM! YOU WILL EXPLAIN YOUSELF, NOW!!_** ”

“Trigon, what… What did I do wrong? I did everything you asked of me.”

“ ** _THEN WHY DIDN’T YOU KILL THE GIRL?! THE SILVER-EYED GIRL?!_** ”

Brother Blood desperately scoured his brain, trying to find exactly what his Lord was referring to, but he came up empty. He genuinely had no idea what Trigon was talking about. One of the Titans had silver eyes? If that was truly the case, how was he supposed to determine what their eye colors were underneath their masks and helmets? Even then, he was confused as to what significance silver eyes held.

“My Lord, I’m afraid I still don’t understand. I wasn’t even aware of the significance of silver eyes, nor that one of the Titans held an individual with them in their ranks. Please, help me understand so that I may rectify my error.”

Trigon didn’t speak, the only sound coming from the roaring flames. Those flames then subsided, calming themselves yet still burning hot. Brother Blood felt the hold on his body release, and he fell to the ground. Collapsing on his knees, he coughed and tilted his head to look up at the statue. Trigon’s head was boring into his, the demon’s eyes filled with hatred, so Blood wisely said nothing as Trigon breathed heavily.

“ _The silver-eyed girl,_ ” Trigon began to explain, much calmer now, “ _has ruined everything. Somehow, her eyes held a power I didn’t believe they held, and it forced me out of Raven’s mind. She’s closed it off from me now, and I can’t get back in. Because of her…_ ”

Brother Blood couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Years of planning and preparation gone in an instant because a little girl pulled something out of thin air. It didn’t seem possible, and yet the fact that it did was staring him in the face. Suddenly he remembered what his acolyte was telling him earlier, that the Titans were on their way to apprehend him at this very moment.

And Raven was with them. His face paled, and in a panic he shot up to his feet.

“My Lord,” he began, “I must advise that we retreat. We’ve lost too much ground to recover, and—”

“ _We will_ not _retreat, cretin,_ ” Trigon interrupted, and Brother Blood felting something grab his throat and lift him upward. “ _I have waited far too long for this day, and I will not let a child steal my victory from me!_ ”

“Yo… Your wish…is my command,” Blood coughed out, and Trigon growled deeply before releasing his grip. Again, Sebastian Blood fell to the ground and coughed, this time a few specks of blood spitting out into the ground. Slowly, he rose to his feet and looked at Trigon’s statue in complete subservience. He knew what Trigon wanted them to do without him even needing to say it, and so he nodded dutifully.

“I will oversee the preparations. Shall I join them?”

“ _No. I have further uses yet of you. But know this. Should you fail me again, you will_ wish _for death’s sweet release._ ”

With sweat dripping down Blood’s brow, he bowed and calmly walked out of the inner sanctum. Unlike before, Trigon’s statue remained lit even as the cult leader left the room. With a calm inner focus, Blood walked out to the main chamber of the church, where the remains of his flock was waiting for him.

“My brothers and sisters,” Blood began as he turned to open a highly decorated chest and reached inside. “the Allfather has one, final demand of us. We are instruments of his will, and we shall not disappoint him.”

Blood turned to face his cult yet again, this time holding a sharp, jagged ceremonial dagger. The eyes of his cult first widened in surprise, then closed in acceptance.

“I volunteer, father,” a man walked up, lowering his hood to reveal his bearded face. Brother Blood solemnly nodded at him, grateful for his sacrifice, then led the man to a stone altar. As the rest of the cult chanted in an ancient, forgotten tongue, Brother Blood gently laid the man on the altar. Gripping the knife tightly, he slowly raised it up high overhead.

“For the glory of Trigon,” the cultist declared, and Blood nodded.

“For the glory of Trigon,” Blood repeated. Then, without saying another world, Brother Blood plunged the knife into the man’s heart.

* * *

 

Jaune ran forward, his shield raised to block the oncoming fire from one of the last remaining mercenary encampments. The metal pinged as the bullets rebounded off of it, but Jaune didn’t stop until he had rammed into the man’s body. He flew back like a ragdoll, slamming against a storefront’s brick wall and slightly cracking it. In a daze, the criminal could do nothing but futilely raise his arm in an attempt to protect his head from Jaune’s shield-blow. His arm made contact with Crocea Mors’ shield first, a loud crack sounding as the blow broke the limb, followed by a thud as Jaune slammed the helmet covered head. The criminal slumped over, and Jaune quickly cuffed the man before moving on.

‘ _These bastards are going to pay,_ ’ Jaune thought as he engaged with another gunman, knocking her rifle out of her hands and kicking her in the gut. When another tried to shoot him, Jaune copied something he’d seen both Pyrrha and Donna do and threw his shield into the man’s head, knocking him out. He quickly slammed the pommel of his sword into his first opponent, then calmly walked over to grab his shield again.

For the past few minutes, he and his friends had been systematically cleaning the city of the Blood’s goons. Whether they were simply hired mercenaries or diehard true believers of his twisted ideology, he didn’t care. What he did care about was that these people had turned this city into a hellhole, both literally and figuratively, almost turned Raven into a puppet of her demonic father, which almost got him and his friends killed, and ruined Ruby’s birthday. The fact that they smuggled Grimm into the city was only icing on the cake.

Still, he was saving the worst of his justified retribution for Brother Blood. He was the man ultimately responsible for everything that had befallen them in the past few weeks. The others were doing the same, forcibly holding themselves back to non-lethal blows even now. Jaune saw Weiss immobilize a group of criminals wielding submachine guns with ice, Nightwing tying several together with bolos, while Starfire bombarded snipers from above. Wonder Girl was front and center, leading the charge against a heavy turret, destroying it and then handily defeating the turret operator.

Floating above them all was a calm yet furious Raven, sending powerful magical blasts across the city as she teleported herself from one group of criminals to the other. She was stretching her magic to its absolute limit, bolstered by her heightened emotional states. Ironically, Jaune figured this outcome was what the Cult of Blood wanted, just not directed towards them. He couldn’t help but smile at that thought.

Another pair of shouts redirected his attention towards a nearby alleyway. Steeling his gaze, Jaune ran towards the alley where he found a trio of gunmen holding a red-haired, freckled young man wearing a green light coat. Seeing him, one of the criminals forcibly grabbed the man as a hostage and held a pistol to the side of his head.

“Not another step or you’re going to see this man’s brains splattered across the pavement,” the mercenary threatened, and Jaune stopped in his tracks.

“Let him go,” Jaune gently said, trying to ensure that the hostage wouldn’t be harmed, but the criminal shook his head.

“Drop the weapons,” he ordered. Jaune bit into his lip, but when the gunman pressed the barrel of his pistol further into the man’s head, he relented. Both halves of Crocea Mors clattered to the ground, and Jaune held up his hands to show that he was unarmed. From behind their helmets, the gunmen smirked and threw their hostage towards Jaune, who deftly caught him as the man stumbled. Seeing that the men were still there, Jaune quickly placed himself in front of the freed hostage and clenched his fists as the criminals aimed their weapons at him.

“Sorry, kid. Nothing personal,” one of the criminals said as they prepared to fire. Jaune’s legs tensed as he prepared to dive both himself and the person he rescued to safety, only for his eyes to widen as he saw a woman with raven-black hair and wearing a purple coat sneak up behind the men wielding a pipe. She swung the makeshift weapon at the back of one man’s head, causing him to collapse. Before the others could respond, she hit the next man in the gut with the pipe, following it up with an upward swing into his head.

“You little-!” the last remaining criminal shouted as he prepared to fire his weapon at her, only for Jaune to tackle the man out of the way, knocking his rifle from his hands. He punched the man’s face repeatedly, only stopping once he had slipped into unconsciousness. With heavy breaths and his heart pounding, Jaune stood up and turned to face the duo.

“Thanks for the assist,” he said to the woman, who was helping the first hostage to his feet.

“Likewise,” she replied with utmost confidence, and Jaune couldn’t help but smile. At the same time, he also felt that this woman looked familiar. He squinted his eyes, trying to find the connection, then found a clipped-on reporter’s badge attached to the right side of her coat. The logo of Metropolis’ Daily Planet newspaper was emblazoned on it, and immediately Jaune figured who this woman was.

“You must be Lois Lane,” Jaune suggested, and Lois nodded in confirmation.

“Lois Lane, Daily Planet. This is my photographer, Jimmy Olsen. You must be the White Knight,” Lois declared as she offered her hand to shake, which Jaune quickly acquiesced to.

“You’ve heard of me?”

“I’ve heard of all of you, actually. Jimmy and I were on the scene in Metropolis when the Boom Tube that you guys arrived in opened up. I was promised an interview with you guys then.”

“Is that why you came here?”

“That and the Chief had us go to try and figure out what was going on. Smelled Blood’s involvement almost immediately. Any comment on that?”

Jaune nodded, finding that he was liking Ms. Lane. “Yeah, this was Brother Blood. The maniac tried to help Trigon take over Raven’s body, and we barely stopped him.”

“I see,” Loise stated as she took out a note pad and quickly jotted down notes, a frown on her face. She could already see the headlines now and smiled as she realized what she’d be able to do with a story of this caliber. Still, she felt that there was something missing, and turned to the only major source she currently had.

“Can you tell me anything else?” she asked, knowing that his time was short before the White Knight had to run back into battle. “Anything that can help us take him and his cult down, the better.”

Jaune thought for a moment, torn between answering her question and rejoining his friends. A thought then sprang to mind, and he nodded.

“I do, actually. Can’t delve into more right now, but I can confirm that Brother Blood has Grimm smuggled into the city.”

“Wait, you mean those creatures that attacked Metropolis? I thought they were all dead?” Jimmy Olsen asked, clearly surprised. Lois’ mind, meanwhile, raced at this bit of news. Brother Blood had smuggled Grimm into Jump City? That was supposed to be impossible. The only Grimm that arrived on Earth were destroyed by the Justice League, yet the fact that they were around meant that some got missed. The term ‘smuggling’ suggested that someone not only managed to get a few, they somehow managed to manufacture and ship them to prospective buyers. Slowly, as more and more pieces of a potential story fell into place, Lois’ smile grew and grew until she was positively beaming.

It kind of unnerved Jaune that she would smile at this news, but he didn’t let that show. He let Jimmy’s obvious discomfort speak for both of them.

“Thank you, White Knight. That will be all,” Lois said as she scribbled down more notes into her pad, then turned to run into the nearest building. “Come on, Jimmy. There’s a good vantage point up on the fourth floor.”

“You got it, Lois!” Jimmy responded as he ran behind her. The two reporters disappeared from Jaune’s view as they closed the door behind them. He looked at the door for a few more moments, then nodded and ran back out onto the street. The others were mopping up the last remnants of the mercenaries besieging Jump City, and overhead they saw helicopter dropships arrive with soldiers. One helicopter made its way to them, landing on the street and allowing its compliment of soldiers to disembark. One man, wearing the insignia of a U.S. Army Colonel on his combat uniform, approached them. Jaune saw that the name ‘Flagg’ was posted on his chest and that Nightwing suddenly got very apprehensive.

“Colonel,” Nightwing stated, and Colonel Flagg nodded at the vigilante. There was a hint of annoyance, but the army man didn’t do anything further beyond jilting his rifle in the direction of Blood’s cathedral.

“We’ve got this street under control,” he said as armed soldiers apprehended the mercenaries. “You go and take Blood in.”

“I don’t recall taking orders from you,” Nightwing replied, even as he waved his hand around to order the other Titans and Jaune and Weiss to continue on. Flagg frowned and glared at Nightwing.

“Ain’t that the problem?” he accused. Before either man could do anything else, Starfire gently flew over to Nightwing and placed her hand on his shoulder. Calmed by the gesture, Nightwing pulled out his grappling gun and zipped away, leaving the soldiers behind. Jaune and Weiss had already done the same and they were all leaving the soldiers behind. Still, Jaune couldn’t help but feel that Flagg’s attention was particularly focused on him and Weiss. The look on her face, partially covered by her mask, told him she felt the same, and Jaune suddenly was particularly grateful that he was able to find his helmet before they set out.

“Nightwing, you mind telling us what that was about?” Weiss pointedly asked as they continued making their way across the city, the towers of the cathedral rising before them. Oddly, there was no one trying to shoot them, and Jaune felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise in apprehension.

“Later,” Nightwing replied. “Just know that Colonel Rick Flagg Jr., and the woman he works for, are _not_ our allies.”

Jaune and Weiss exchanged a glance. This Rick Flagg and Nightwing clearly had history, but they didn’t know who this supposed woman Flagg worked for was. Still, they understood that now was not the time to ask such questions. Right now, they had to focus on the cathedral standing in front of them. To their surprise and apprehension, none of them spotted any movement, yet the signs of battle were widespread.

“Anyone else getting a horror movie vibe here?” Donna asked, gripping her xiphos tightly.

Weiss nodded. “Clearly. Something’s not right. Someone should have shot us by now.”

“The fact that you think getting shot at is normal says a lot,” Jaune joked, and Weiss playfully glared at him.

“Oh, just like you disappearing from a fight?”

“Hey, _I_ was rescuing and then talking to Lois Lane. Told her about the Grimm smuggling.”

Weiss looked a little surprised at Jaune’s admission. She’d figured that Jaune was rescuing someone, but that someone being Lois Lane hadn’t crossed her mind. Still, she registered the second part of Jaune’s admission, that he had clued her in on the greater scope, and nodded. Donna did the same and flashed the White Knight a thumbs-up.

“Good work, Vomit Boy,” she joked, and Jaune groaned. He knew exactly where she had gotten that infamous nickname from, and his hopes of it dying were dashed. Donna then frowned and looked back at the cathedral, then spied a balcony. She pointed to it and unfurled her lasso.

“We can get in from there,” she said, twirling her lasso overhead before throwing the loop towards a spire. The lasso looped around a pointed rock on the balcony, and she drew it tight. Testing it, she found that it could support her weight, and then began to quickly climb it at an impressive speed. Following after the Amazon Princess, Nightwing grappled up to her while Starfire and Raven flew up.

“Allow me,” Weiss said as she formed a platform Glyph underneath her and Jaune’s feet. When the platform began to move up, Jaune stumbled for a moment but Weiss was able to catch him on the arm.

“Thanks,” Jaune stated as Weiss helped to stabilize him.

“No problem,” she replied as she checked the amount of Nth Metal currently in Myrtenaster’s revolver. She frowned, noting that her supplies were running low, but shook her head and focused upward. The amount on hand would have to make do. Rejoining the other heroes, Nightwing quietly picked the lock and opened the door with a quiet creak. The inside of the church was dead silent, not to mention unnerving. Silently, the six made their way across the wooden floors.

‘ _Attic,_ ’ Weiss suggested through their shared Heads-Up-Display. Her thought made sense, given how high up they were. Reaching a trap door, they opened it and saw a ladder leading down to another floor. Moving down it, they continued creeping through the dark corridors, the creaky wood making way for a dark red rug covering stonework. Weiss had to admit that the architecture was exquisite, and that Blood apparently had good taste in décor, however much it disturbed her. Behind the gilded appearance, she could sense something twisted and dark permeating the structure, and she wanted nothing more than to get this excursion over with.

They finally came across a dark wooden threshold, where they heard muffled chanting from within. Holding his finger up to his lips, Nightwing silently opened the door and entered, with the others following one by one. They found themselves in the main chamber of the cathedral, the chanting much louder. None of them recognized the language being used, but all felt it was disturbing and wrong on a fundamental level. Wanting to get a better vantage point, the Titans quietly scaled the walls and crouch-walked across the wooden support beams on the top of the church’s roof.

“Brothers have mercy…” Weiss muttered as she saw the horrific sight below. She saw the cultists gathered below on a red pentagram sigil burnt into the ground. At its center laid a stone altar, a man lying on top of it. His chest was carved open, his internal organs ritualistically removed with surgical precision. His face was calm and tranquil, almost as though he not only accepted this terrible fate, he welcomed it. Standing over him was Brother Blood, his hands stained a dark red as he squeezed the man’s heart over a golden cup.

“Brothers and sisters!” Brother Blood shouted in a mad sermon, the chanting of his followers increasing. “The time has come for our most sacred ritual!”

The cultists chanted louder, swaying back and forth as the heroes moved along the bannisters, angling themselves for maximum efficiency. Remembering his conversation with Lois, Jaune had set his helmet to record everything with the intention of giving it to her after this was over. He figured that she would appreciate the bounty of evidence this recording would provide. So he kept watching, even though a sinking feeling was forming in his gut.

‘ _Uggh, that is nasty…_ ’ Jaune thought as Brother Blood drank the blood from the goblet, staining his lips red. He then passed the cup to another cultist, who drank from the cup as well. Jaune felt bile rising up his throat as more and more cultists drank the sacrificial victim’s blood in a mockery of a holy sacrament until finally, the cup made its way back to Brother Blood. With a manic smile on his face, Brother Blood held the goblet up high and stared into it.

“Trigon, Allfather to all things, we offer this blood to you!”

“ _Glory to Trigon!_ ”

“It is you who will cleanse this world in a baptism of fire, washing away the filth and sin!”

“ _Glory to Trigon!_ ”

“But to do this most sacred, holy rite… You require a sacrifice,” Blood decreed, holding out a bloody, jagged knife in his hand. Jaune stared at it with wide eyes, wondering exactly what he was going to do with it, only to gasp as the other cultists pulled out knives of their own. Raven’s eyes widened as she realized exactly what they were about to do, and with a start, she tried to stop Brother Blood with a magical attack, only for an unseen barrier to block it. Sensing this, Brother Blood slowly turned his head to look at the Titans, his face telling them that he had known they were there the entire time.

“Glory to Trigon,” he said, and at once every cultist stabbed themselves in the gut with their knives. They gurgled, blood spewing from their mouths as they fought through the pain and slashed their bellies open, then slumped back as the life bled from them. The heroes were too stunned to react to this mass suicide, watching in horror as the blood began to churn and boil atop the pentagram. The scorch marks shined a dull red, symbols from a long-dead language flashing in and out of existence as the blood pooled along its lines, converging in its center.

“Stop him! Stop him, now!” Raven yelled as she continued trying to break through the barrier. Knocked out of their stupor, the other heroes joined in on her attacks, trying to break it down. The barrier became visible as cracks appeared along its surface, each block further damaging it as the conjoined blood floated upwards as a massive sphere. Just as the shield finally broke, the blood orb churned and suddenly shot into an awaiting Brother Blood. Streams of the red liquid entered his body from every orifice, his screams of pain muffled into faint gargles as more and more of the blood filled his body until, finally, every drop was sucked in. He fell to his knees, breathing heavily as Wonder Girl charged towards him, intending to run him through with her sword.

“Aaagh!” she screamed as she swung downward, only for Blood’s hand to shoot upwards and grab her arm in a vice grip, halting it entirely. Shocked, Donna could only watch as Blood tilted his face to look at her’s, and she saw two pairs of human-looking blood-red eyes boring into her own. She then felt another fist slam into her gut, knocking the breath out of her while sending her flying back, crashing through several rows of pews. The wooden pieces of furniture shattered as her body tumbled, but she was able to right herself and land on her feet, dragging her sword into the stone floor to slow herself down to a screeching halt. Ripping the weapon out of the stone, she twirled and pointed it towards Brother Blood with her shield raised in front of her. The other Titans joined her as Blood’s veins bulged, the cult leader thrashing in utter agony before throwing his head back to laugh hysterically.

“HAHA _HAHAH!_ ” Brother Blood laughed, his voice merging with Trigon’s halfway through. “ _You are too late, Titans! There is nothing you can do that can stand against the power I now possess!_ ”

Raven took note of Blood’s choice of words. The use of ‘I’ was significant to her, telling the half-demon that the bonding with Sebastian Blood was not as absolute as her own. Ruby’s attack, for lack of a better word, must have done more damage to him than she thought.

‘ _Perfect,_ ’ she thought. Then, without saying another word, Raven fired a magical blast that knocked the possessed Brother Blood back, his body shattering the stone altar into tiny fragments. Taking this as a signal, Nightwing pulled out a wing-ding and threw it at Blood’s head.

“Titans, Go!” he cried out, and as one the heroes charged towards Brother Blood. Starfire flew forth, hurling starbolts at the possessed man. Crossing his arms to shield himself, Blood winced as the orbs burnt his skin and bruised his arms. Still, when Starfire finally made contact, he managed to slam both of his hands into her chin, flipping her up. Recovering, Starfire continued the momentum and kicked Brother Blood up towards the ceiling. Starfire flew after him, throwing more and more starbolts that forced him through the cathedral’s roof and out into the open sky. Once they were high enough, Starfire grabbed hold of him and tightened her grip on his arms.

“Burn,” she said, and then released a pulsating wave of ultraviolet energy like a small neon-green nova. The possessed Blood was sent hurtling towards the ground, his body covered in burns and smoking even as the rest of the Titans alongside Jaune and Weiss ran to apprehend him.

“He’s gotta be dead, right?” Jaune stated, only to stop and stare in bewilderment as he saw the mangled body of Brother Blood push itself off the ground. His limbs were visibly misshapen, in some cases bones were poking out of the skin, yet he didn’t seem to mind. Then a series of cracks announced his bones forcibly healing themselves and pushing back into their normal configurations. The burns went away, revealing Blood’s white, unmarred skin bare to the world.

“Uggh, that is _nasty_!” Jaune announced as he tried to keep his gaze off of Blood’s naked body, while Weiss gagged.

“Oh gods, I did _not_ want to see that!” she wretched, and Blood merely smiled while holding out his arms. His veins bulged, then they stared in abject horror as blood oozed from his arms and wrapped tightly around his body. Jaune felt the urge to vomit while Weiss’ face turned green. Nightwing, Donna, and Starfire stared at Brother Blood, completely horrified, until Donna finally coughed.

“You have issues, you know that right?” she rhetorically asked as Brother Blood created a whip made entirely out of blood and whipped it towards her. She quickly brought up her brace to block it, allowing the end to wrap around her enchanted piece of armor. Grabbing hold of it with her other hand, she pulled and forced Blood to fly towards her, where she met him with the rim of her shield. Landing on his back, Blood rolled away from a downward stab, then punched her away, his strength boosted by Trigon’s magic. He rose to his feet as Nightwing rushed to face him head-on alongside Jaune, and the three descended into a messy brawl.

Weiss watched as her friend battled the monstrosity, carefully trying to form a Glyph at Blood’s feet without catching her friends in the crossfire. She was finding it difficult, given their close proximity to one another, and soon scoffed in annoyance.

“Screw it,” she said to herself as she pointed Myrtenaster’s blade forward, forming a Glyph behind her. She felt her body tense, and then she launched herself like a rocket, skewering the surprised Brother Blood in his chest. Her momentum carried them forward, Blood managing to stop himself by digging in his heels. He tried to punch her off, only for Weiss to inject him with raw Nth Metal powder. He roared in pain as the anti-magical metallic isotope worked its way through his body, allowing her the chance to rip her weapon out of Blood’s body and kick him away.

“ _AAAGH!_ ” Blood and Trigon roared in fury, attempting to remove the Nth Metal. They concentrated, and the metallic powder was forced out of his body in a faint puff. Breathing heavily, Blood glared at the Titans as they charged towards him, his mind split into two. For Blood, the sense of power coursing through his veins was electrifying, the fulfillment of lifetimes of work. He felt as though he were a god, and yet these heathens dared to challenge him? For Trigon, however, his feelings were far more primal. These insects had bested him. Even if only temporarily, they had bested him, not just now but before as well. Every fiber of his beings screamed to the heavens at this insult. He was born to conquer, borne of pure evil. He could not help but want to conquer everything he saw, for it was in his nature. So to see a group of children stand before him, halting his ever-expanding conquest, made his blood boil.

With a roar, Blood caught Wonder Girl’s arm and pivoted, hurling the Amazonian princess into Starfire. He ducked underneath a thrown wing-ding, punching Jaune in the gut at the same time. Weiss tried to stab him, only for Blood to deliberately allow the rapier to stab into his hand. He twisted it, breaking his arm while ripping Myrtenaster from Weiss’ grip in the process, then headbutted her away.

“ _You…children,_ ” Blood began, his voice wholly merged with Trigon’s as he ripped Myrtenaster from his arm, blood oozing out of the open wound, “ _have been thorns in my side for far too long. I was content with exacting my vengeance upon thee, letting you live in suffering whilst I carry out my plans upon your world. But no more. I see now that letting you live, even to suffer, is a mistake. One that I shall not repeat._ ”

Blood roared again, a blood-red aura enveloping him, as he lunged towards the nearest Titan. It happened to be Jaune, who was barely able to bring his shield up in time to halt the blow. Still, his arm vibrated from the force, and he gritted his teeth in an effort to stem the pain. With a defiant yell, Jaune pushed him off and swung his sword horizontally, slashing across Blood’s stomach. For a brief moment, blood poured out of the grievous wound, but it soon healed.

“Oh, come on!” Jaune groaned before Blood fired an orb of Trigon’s magic into him. Jaune flew back, Raven catching him in a net of her own creation before his back impacted against a nearby store. As he picked himself up, he saw a blur of white as Weiss was flung away. Without thinking, he dove to catch her, bumping across the ground while keeping her from harm.

“ow…”

Weiss looked down at her friend and shook her head while smiling. “My hero.”

“It’s nice for my efforts to be appreciated,” Jaune stated as Weiss helped him up. Frowning, they turned to face Brother Blood again, who was currently in a four-way brawl with Wonder Girl, Nightwing, and Starfire.

“He’s weaker,” Raven noted as she floated up to them. “The connection my father has with his chief acolyte isn’t as strong as it was with me.”

“That’s good,” Weiss admitted, remembering the thrashing Trigon had given them earlier. She studied his body, seeing how most of the wounds the Titans were inflicting were being healed by Trigon’s magic. The lone exception was the stab she inflicted, the one where she injected him with a raw dose of Nth Metal. An idea sprang to mind, and she turned to face Jaune.

“White Knight,” she said, catching Jaune’s attention, “you still have those grenades I helped you make?”

“Uhh, which ones?” Jaune asked. Weiss had helped him make a lot of specialty grenades from the substances she was using, and many of them would apply in this exact situation.

“The one filled with Nth Metal shrapnel.”

“Oh, those! Yeah, I haven’t used them yet. Didn’t want to hurt Raven.”

“Thank you for that,” Raven added, realizing where Weiss was going. “Any compunctions using it on him?”

“Not a damn one,” Jaune admitted with a frown while pulling out one of the grenades. “Only have three, though.”

“It’ll have to do,” Weiss stated then turned to face them. “Raven, how much do you think it would take to force Trigon out of Blood’s body?”

Raven studied the grenades for a moment, then nodded. “If you place all the grenades just right, what you have should be enough to expel my father.”

“What are we going to do about him?” Jaune asked the obvious question, warily watching the battle. Weiss frowned, she hadn’t gotten to that point, but from the corner of her eye, she saw Raven tentatively rub the chakra on her forehead.

“… I have a solution,” Raven offered, the tone in her voice making Jaune and Weiss nervous. Seeing their expressions, Raven looked at them with utmost conviction. “Do you trust me?”

Slightly confused by the question, both Remnantians looked at each other for a brief moment then back at Raven with a nod.

“Of course, we do,” Jaune emphasized, putting his hand on her shoulder. “You’re our friend.”

“Nothing will ever change that,” Weiss declared, placing her hand on Raven’s other shoulder. “Even if your family’s evil.”

Raven chuckled at Weiss’ joke, then became stoic as she began floating away. “We only have one shot to make this work, so I need you to time it when I tell you to. Got it?”

“Got it,” Jaune repeated, nodding his head. Weiss did as well, and together they turned to face the possessed cult leader. Weiss then formed a Glyph below herself and Jaune, and they both grabbed the other’s arm tightly.

“This is gonna suck, isn’t it?”

“Probably,” Weiss admitted, then triggered the Glyph. They were suddenly thrown high into the air, the contents of their stomachs threatening to spew out of their mouths from the sudden acceleration. They were able to keep it down, however – Jaune with much greater difficulty than Weiss – and soon they found themselves arcing above the fight. They saw Raven meditating in the center of the heavily damaged cathedral’s pentagram sigil, her cape billowing in the wind with her eyes tightly closed. Forming another Glyph to stop themselves, Weiss reangled themselves to face Blood entirely, calculating where he would move next. Then, once she had it figured, she primed the Glyph again, launching both her and Jaune towards Brother Blood. Jaune was out in front, his shield raised in front of them, and like a white-golden meteor, they slammed into a surprised Brother Blood with enough force to crack the pavement. Their momentum carried them forward, carving a rut into the pavement before slamming into a large concrete planter holding a decorative tree.

“Take this, you bastard!” Weiss yelled before stabbing Myrtenaster into Blood’s shoulder, the rapier blade going through and into the concrete behind him. Trigon and Blood roared in pain while Jaune used his superior strength to hold him down.

“Good job, guys!” Donna yelled out as she raced towards them. Weiss looked at her lasso and pointed to it, trying to keep the struggling Blood pinned. Donna glanced towards her lasso then at Weiss before finally seeing Raven and immediately understood. Taking out her lasso, she looped it around Blood’s body and pulled it tightly. Grinding her teeth, she dug in her heels, refusing to relent.

Nightwing and Starfire, meanwhile, rushed over to Raven, wondering what she was doing. Before they could make it very far, however, Raven’s astral projection suddenly appeared before them, halting them both in their tracks.

“ _I suggest that you stay away for the moment,_ ” Raven’s projection told them. “ _I am currently conversing with my avatars._ ”

“Don’t you mean ‘Emoticlones’?” Starfire asked, and the astral projection simply gave her a look. Nightwing found it amusing that, even when mostly shadow, he could still feel the annoyance dripping from Raven.

“How long will it take?” Nightwing asked, hearing the struggle coming from behind him.

“ _Not long, although Rage is proving herself difficult again. White Knight and Ivory Mage know the plan. Help them see it through, and above all else, I ask you to trust me._ ”

Before Nightwing could inquire further, the astral projection went away. Both Titans frowned, looking at Raven before shouts of surprise caught their attention. They saw Jaune getting hurled back, Blood grabbing the back of Weiss’ head and slamming it into the concrete while ripping out Myrtenaster from his shoulder. He moved to stab her with it, only for Donna to quickly pull him towards her and socked him across the jaw. Unfortunately, the action of doing so loosened her grip on the lasso, allowing Blood to rip it away from her. The magical rope loosened, allowing Blood to stretch his arms experimentally. Then, he glared at the Amazon and marched towards her.

“ _You will be first,_ ” he declared, and Donna scowled while marching towards him. She banged her xiphos on her shield challengingly, then pointed it at him.

“Do you really think you can challenge an Amazon, monster?” she asked, then leaped towards him with her shield in front and her sword raised above her head. Yelling at the top of her lungs, she slammed into Brother Blood with enough force to slam him back into the concrete, shattering it. Blood, with a tight grip on the shield’s rim, was able to keep his bearings, however, and dodged a quick stab from Wonder Girl. He began to push back, forcing Wonder Girl to lean back, before Starfire reentered the fray. The Tamaranean fired several starbolts into his back, charring away the blood-suit that had enveloped him and burning his back. Blood let loose an unholy screech, glaring at Starfire.

Donna took the opportunity to knee him in the gut, causing Blood to double over. She then clasped both of her hands together and slammed them into his back, knocking him to the ground. Donna tried to stomp, only for Blood to suddenly form a whip of blood behind her like a geyser. Catching her off guard, the blood-whip slapped her away with a shriek, allowing him to regain his bearings just as Starfire returned for another pass. Scowling, Blood formed a sphere of magic in his hands and fired it in front of her, causing Starfire to halt in her tracks. A second orb slammed into her, knocking her away. Brother Blood smirked, only to feel a sharp pain as a wing-ding sliced his head. Feeling a trickle of blood coming down his brow, he turned to face the Gothamite, clenching his fists as a red aura enveloped them.

With a wordless roar, Blood charged at Nightwing, intending to inflict upon him great and terrible pain. Nightwing nimbly performed a sliding duck underneath Blood’s punch, jabbing the possessed man with his stun baton at the same time. Arcs of electricity coursed through his body, causing Blood to spasm momentarily and allow Nightwing to flip up and kick him in the head on his downward swing. Pivoting on his foot, Nightwing then socked Brother Blood across the face, spinning around and allowing Nightwing to dropkick him away. Rolling to his feet, Nightwing immediately charged towards Brother Blood, an angry snarl plastered across his face. The two men met, descending into a fierce brawl.

With Trigon’s magic coursing through him, Blood was clearly the stronger of the two, but he was inexperienced as an actual fighter. His strengths lay with manipulation and planning, not hand-to-hand combat. Nightwing, even without powers, had years of experience and training over Brother Blood, allowing him to nimbly dodge his attacks. Each dodge was accompanied by an accurate counterattack, forcing the possessed priest back. The only reason why he was still standing was because of Trigon’s magic, but it wasn’t enough on its own.

Growing tired of their engagement, Blood roared as the dark veins on his body grew darker. A pulse of red magic shot out, knocking Nightwing to his back. He tried to rise up quickly, only for Blood to beat him to the punch and grab him by the throat. He squeezed, and Nightwing gasped for air only to receive none. Rather than gloat, Blood glared into Nightwing’s eyes while continuing to choke him to death, even as Nightwing kicked and punched to try and escape.

“ _GAAGH!_ ” Blood screamed as a sword was suddenly thrust through his back and out his gut, causing him to release Nightwing and stumble forward. With his hands clutching the end of the blade, he turned to face his attacker, only to receive a gauntleted fist to the face.

“That was from Golden Dragon,” Jaune declared as he punched Brother Blood again. He threw punch after punch, using his shield to block Blood’s retaliatory strikes. He punched him again, causing Blood to spin around from the blow and allow Jaune the chance to rip Crocea Mors from his body. When Blood spun around to face him, Jaune promptly stabbed him in the heart, causing the possessed man to stumble back once again. Breathing heavily, Jaune prepared to move again, only for Blood to glare at him and grab hold of the sword’s hilt.

Then, with a single movement, he broke the blade right above the hilt. Only a small chunk was left, turning what was once a longsword into little more than a knife. Jaune stared flabbergasted as his family’s ancestral weapon laid broken, the other half slipping out of Blood’s body with a wet squelch.

“… Dude, the hell?” Jaune asked, utterly offended. “That was my great-grandfather’s!”

With a snarl, Blood flipped the remains of Crocea Mors and hurled it towards Jaune, who simply reacted and twisted his body out of the way. His hand reached out, and to his surprise, managed to grab the hilt as it soared past.

“… Huh!” Jaune exclaimed in excitement at having just done that. With a confident smirk, he twirled his weapon around and threw it back towards Brother Blood. Not expecting the action, Blood felt the blade shard sink into his stomach. A sharp pain shot through him, and he tried to rip it out only for a sheet of ice to spring upward from a suddenly constructed Glyph. He turned his head to see a recovered Weiss, pressing a spot on her head with her hand while pointing Myrtenaster with the other. Hearing footsteps, he turned to face Jaune charging towards him. Roaring, he tried to break himself free, hearing the ice crack under his strength.

“ _Now!_ ” Raven suddenly shouted from inside the cathedral, and suddenly the world seemed to slow down. Brother Blood saw Jaune pull out a trio of grenades, and he could sense the Nth Metal held within them. With wide eyes, he tried to fire magic towards him, only for a lasso to loop around his arm and stop him. A bolo forced the other to pin to his side, and a thrown starbolt knocked his head back. The actions of his teammates allowed Jaune the chance to reach the possessed man. Gripping Crocea Mors, he slid it down with all of his strength, causing Blood to yell. Jaune then primed the grenades before shoving them into Blood’s body, much to his surprise and horror.

“I’ll see you in Hell,” Jaune declared as he ripped out Crocea Mors’ hilt, grabbed the fallen blade, and sprinted away as fast as he could. The other Titans did the same, diving behind a wall of debris as Brother Blood tried to pull the grenades out just as his master’s magic sealed the wound. Then, they all exploded. He felt his flesh tear as the grenades shot thousands of Nth Metal shards into his body, their anti-magical properties halting the magic of his master. Pain unlike anything he had ever felt coursed through him, the remains of Trigon’s magic the only thing keeping his body intact and him alive. He felt a sudden weakness, and at once understood what was finally happening.

“ _No. NONONON_ nono!” Blood shouted as he fell to his knees, clutching his side in agony before shrieking into the heavens. Red mist erupted from his mouth, coalescing into a gargantuan cloud of pure evil. It vaguely looked humanoid, telling them that this was Trigon. The cloud angrily swirled around, intending to punish the Titans for their transgressions, only to feel a presence coming from behind. The cloud turned, and from the ruins of Blood’s cathedral strode out Raven Roth. Her head was held high, free of its constricting hood, and her robes were a clean, spotless white.

“I’ve done a lot of thinking, father,” Raven began as she marched towards the entity. It roared and tried to strike her, only for Raven to easily knock it aside and him back into Blood’s church. “Why you do what you do, why you always come for me. You simply can’t help it. It’s in your nature, borne of the collective evil of a billion worlds.

“And just as it is in your nature to conquer,” Raven spat, pinning him with magic of her own, “it is in mine to oppose you! For as much as you are my father, I am also the daughter of Arella, a human of Azarath. A realm you destroyed in an effort to get to me. For so long I thought that was because I, like you, was evil and that you were simply attracted to it. But now I know the truth. You fear me, father. Fear that I can do what none of your sons can.

“For I can beat you,” Raven declared, flying upwards as an extra pair of eyes appeared. Instead of red, however, they were a brilliant white as she spread her arms wide. White magic swirled around Trigon’s form, trapping him even as he tried to escape.

“Like you, father,” Raven continued as she charged up a spell, “I, too, have learned my lesson! I see now that simply trying to keep you out is of no use, for you will simply plot and scheme against me and my friends from the shadows! Away from my sight! No more! Even if I cannot destroy you now, I can ensure that you will never hurt anyone else so long as I live!”

Raven thrust her hands together, pointing them towards Trigon who had begun to panic.

“AZARATH! METRION! ZINTHOS!” Raven shouted at the top of her lungs. A white beam shot towards Trigon, enveloping him entirely and forcing the rest of the Titans to cover their eyes. They heard only a wordless scream and a loud explosion as Trigon was consumed. The chaos seemed to last for an eternity, but slowly the light died down and the noise fled alongside it. Tentatively, the Titans poked their heads out from behind their cover to see Raven slowly floating down. Her white cloak was flickering, and when she finally touched down it returned back to her normal purple. The other Titans left their cover and went towards her, slowly at first, until she finally turned towards them. At first, they simply stared at each other.

Then, a large smile broke out over Raven’s face, and at once both groups smiled in realization. They had won, against all odds. Starfire held the biggest grin on her face, and mimicking her friend, she pumped her fist.

“Booyah!” she cheered, and the others followed suit. Their joyous celebration was cut short when they heard a cough and the grinding of stone. Following its source, they turned to see Brother Blood trying to claw his way to safety, miraculously still alive after all the trauma. He was bleeding profusely and quickly losing strength, and without immediate medical attention, he would most assuredly die. Neither Jaune nor Weiss felt all that conflicted, given the hell he had subjected them to. Neither did Nightwing or Starfire, for that matter, but to their surprise, they saw Raven walk over and kneel over him.

“Raven, what are you-?” Nightwing asked, only to be stunned into silence as Raven healed him of his injuries. The Nth Metal shards had been ejected from his body for the most part, allowing her to heal his more life-threatening wounds. In surprise, he flipped over on his back to look at her stoic face.

“Do you know why I saved you?” she asked, knowing that Blood had no answer to give. Before he could even try, she continued. “My father told you that, should you fail him again, you would wish for death. Part of me feels that I should have let you, for everything you did to me, my friends, and this city. But I won’t, because as much as I hate to admit it, my father was right about one thing: letting you die would be a mercy. Instead, you will face justice for your crimes, not just against me, but against everyone you have ever harmed. You will watch, behind a cold, dark cell as everything you’ve ever built crumbles before you. Your church will be hunted like the criminals they are, your secrets revealed for all the world to see, and you will be denied that which you crave most: power, over both others and yourself.”

“No… No-!” Blood wheezed in realization at what awaited him, only for Raven to cut him off with a single punch, knocking him out. With a frown, she walked back and rejoined the others, who looked at her appraisingly.

“Are you sure that’s wise?” Weiss asked, and Raven nodded.

“Locking him away will be a worse punishment than anything we can do to him. Besides, if we kill him, his remaining followers may turn him into a martyr. That is too good of a fate for him.”

Weiss thought over Raven’s explanation, then nodded in understanding. From what she knew of the man, this was a worse punishment. Jaune then looked appraisingly at Raven and tilted his head.

“What did you do to him?” he asked, and Raven pointed at her chakra.

“I sealed him away,” she revealed, causing them to gasp.

“Friend Raven, you can’t be serious!” Starfire exclaimed, but Raven nodded.

“I am. Trying to keep him away led to all this. His plots and schemes escaped our notice until it was too late. By sealing him in my chakra, I can ensure that he’ll never leave my sight again, and when I finally die, he will, too.”

“Are you sure? What if he breaks out again?” Nightwing asked, worried for his friend, but Raven merely smiled at him.

“He won’t,” she declared with absolute conviction, a victorious smile on her face. The other Titans studied her for a moment, then smiled back and nodded. They all trusted her and knew that she, and she alone, was strong enough for such a monumental task. Their attentions broke from one another as scores of Javelins emerged from above, ferrying Justice League relief crews all across the city. A sense of relief flooded through them, and they suddenly felt the exhaustion overwhelm their bodies. They collapsed onto the ground, letting their screaming muscles finally rest before they saw a man fly down to meet them.

“Titans, White Knight, Ivory Mage,” Superman greeted them with a warm smile, checking them for internal injuries with his X-Ray Vision. “Good work.”

[~][~]


	24. Windows to the Soul

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Teams RWBY and JNPR recover from their injuries as questions linger around the mysterious power Ruby showed. Doors close, yet a new chapter begins in their lives, while Ozpin deals with a monster.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 18: Windows to the Soul **

[~][~]

_November 1 st, 9:00 AM_

_Watchtower, Geosynchronous Orbit, Earth_

A steady beeping was heard as Yang and the rest of her team recovered in the Watchtower’s medical ward. A cool sensation was running down her arm and throughout her body, telling her that the morphine was working. She hadn’t quite fully realized just how hurt she was until they finally loaded her into the Javelin. It was there that they found none of them, including Pyrrha, were truly capable of combat. Pyrrha nearly collapsed into her cot, she was so exhausted. For Yang herself, the damage was extensive. Multiple broken bones, including her left wrist and several of her ribs, a concussion, lacerations and bruises, and much more. Her friends and teammates were in similar states, yet most of them were conscious. Ironically, the only ones still standing were Weiss and Jaune, who just entered the room carrying trays of hot food.

“Lunch’s here,” Jaune announced as he passed the food along.

“Yay, food!” Nora cheered, only to wince as her body protested her normal excitement. “Ow…”

“Nora, settle down,” Ren lightly chastised as he raised his bed up and allowed his leader to place his food onto his bed’s built in tray. “You know what the doctor said.”

“I know, Renny…”

The seven of them descended into silence as they ate their food, Jaune with one hand as his left arm was in a sling. His mind raced through the horrific events of yesterday about how close they came to death. It reminded him of when they fought Brainiac, how hopelessly outmatched they were. Both times, as each of his friends fell one by one, he felt they were going to die. But this time, they managed to win. They beat Trigon, a demonic god at least several thousands of years old. A threat that was, in all honestly, something they had never truly faced before.

All because Ruby did… _something_ with her eyes.

“Any word on Ruby?” Blake asked, and Weiss nodded.

“Her condition’s stable,” the heiress revealed, “but she’s still in a coma. They don’t think she’ll wake up for another day, at least. But they’ve seen no evidence of long-term brain damage.”

“So, it wasn’t brain damage that knocked her out but…exhaustion?” Pyrrha suggested, and Weiss nodded again.

“That’s the current theory, anyway. That since she’d never used her silver eye powers, for lack of a better term, her body simply couldn’t handle the strain.”

“Makes sense. The first time I tried my Semblance, I nearly passed out,” Pyrrha stated. “If I overextend myself, I still run that risk.”

“Hmmhm,” Yang hummed, rubbing her free fingers across her chin. The blonde brawler was immensely relieved that her sister, her last blood-relative, wasn’t hurt. But the fact remained that she still had absolutely no idea what Ruby even did. Yang didn’t bother asking Weiss again, for the League still had no idea. Currently, Ruby was in an isolated room where League specialists were poring over her with highly specialized equipment to try and figure out what was going on with her.

They could see them now, a collection of doctors, nurses, technicians, and a few superheroes. At first, she only saw a single superheroine in their midst, a young woman appearing to be in her early twenties wearing an outfit reminiscent of a traditional stage magician. Weiss had told them that the woman was Zatanna Zatera, a famous magician whose skills were anything but illusionary. Zatanna was eventually joined by a middle-aged bearded man wearing a tan trench coat, the smell of smoke drifting off him. He had briefly introduced himself as John Constantine, a British sorcerer who specialized in detective work. Constantine was apparently a colleague of Batman alongside Zatanna, and the two of them worked tirelessly to scan Ruby’s eyes for anything magical. They apparently had trouble as a third man eventually joined them, who wore a blue and gold cloak capped by a gold helmet that completely covered his face. Unlike the others, he hadn’t introduced himself, forcing one the doctors to tell them the man was called Doctor Fate.

“What do you think it is?” Jaune quietly asked, his attention squarely focused on his fellow leader.

“Magic, it has to be,” Blake responded as she poured over a tablet. She had no other answer to give, and the fact that three highly-skilled magic users were focusing all their attention onto Ruby was further credence to that theory.

“Wouldn’t they have said something if it was magic, though?” Nora pointed out. Blake didn’t have an answer to that, realizing that Nora had a point. If Ruby’s eyes were simply magic, why wouldn’t the League simply tell them? No, something else was going on, and that made the Faunus worried. Before she could ruminate in her thoughts again, they heard the door open, prompting the Remnantians’ attentions to shoot over to their guest. They smiled when they saw it was Dick Grayson, walking along on a crutch. The rest of the Titans were with him, except for Garfield and Raven.

“Sup, Vic,” Yang greeted, and the cyborg smiled and waved back.

“Yang,” Victor replied as he sat down on an open chair. The other Titans did the same, and for a while the group of fire-forged friends were content to sit in silence. Every so often, however, their eyes drifted towards Ruby’s room, watching as specialists worked over her, and they couldn’t help but slightly frown.

“How’s BB?” Nora quietly asked. Out of everyone’s injuries, Beast Boy’s was perhaps the most extensive. He had suffered a concussion, multiple broken bones, including cracks along his spine, and a partially collapsed lung. It was a miracle he managed to stay up so long.

“Raven’s tending to him,” Dick answered. “She assures us that he’s going to be fine, although he won’t be able to get out of bed for a week.”

“Can’t or she won’t let him?” Weiss pointedly asked, and Dick couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Probably both, if we’re being honest,” M’gann answered, then turned her head to look at Ruby. “How is she?”

“Physically? Fine, just put into an exhaustion-induced coma,” Weiss said. “But they won’t tell us anything more than that.”

“That’s…frustrating,” Koriand’r admitted with a frown. The Tamaranean then turned to M’gann, who already knew what question was on everyone’s mind without even needing to use her telepathy.

“I already told you what I saw,” she started with a sigh, “and other than it being a wave of white light, I don’t know what it was. I can’t even begin to guess.”

“And that’s what confuses me,” Jaune admitted. “Ever since we learned that Brainiac thought Ruby’s eyes were special, we’d been running test after test to try and figure out what caught his interest. Even Raven did a scan on them, and they all found nothing. Yet, somehow, they managed to banish a demon from Raven’s mind _and_ destroy all the Grimm. Could they always do that?”

“Possibly,” Blake spoke up, catching everyone’s attention. The panther Faunus was staring over a tablet, reading Tales of Remnant, a collection of fairytales Ruby had in her scroll. Sensing that everyone’s attention was on her, Blake swiped her finger across the screen, bringing the story in question onto a wall-mounted tv screen.

“Hey, I remember this story,” Yang said. “My dad and Uncle Qrow read it to me and Ruby after she started grade school. Some kids were picking on her because of her silver eyes, and he told us this to cheer her up.”

“I’m unfamiliar,” Weiss admitted. “Yang, if you please?”

“Certainly.” Yang readjusted herself on her bed and looked at everyone. “Basically, the story goes like this: long ago, before there were huntsmen and huntresses, the Grimm ran rampant across Remnant. They killed everyone they saw, entire villages and cities disappearing overnight. It was the dark times, where Remnant had no defenders. That began to change one day when a woman appeared at a remote village, her eyes a bright silver. The village didn’t trust outsiders, and so gave her the cold shoulder. Some even harassed her, but she held her head high and never retaliated.

“Eventually, however, the Grimm attacked the village. Everyone was certain that they were all going to die, but the silver-eyed woman confidently stood between the villagers who had harassed her and the Grimm. The Grimm prepared to kill her, but after a single look from her eyes, they all turned to stone and died. The village was saved, and rather than accept the grateful villagers’ thanks and newfound generosity, she merely left them behind, intending to help the next village. And the next, and the next, and you get the idea. She was eventually joined by more, and these ‘silver-eyed warriors’ protected Remnant from the forces of darkness for many years until, one day, they disappeared after a great battle against the Grimm.”

“This one says it was against an evil empire, whose emperor wanted their powers for himself,” Pyrrha pointed out, but Yang waved her off.

“Regardless, the story ends the same. The silver-eyed warriors disappeared, but in their sacrifice, inspired the very warriors that defended Remnant ever since.” Yang shrugged. “Admittedly, I thought that my dad and Uncle Qrow made that up just to cheer Ruby up and make her proud of her eyes, but now that you mention it…”

“Perhaps there’s truth to it,” Blake finished and nodded. They all stared at the screen, studying its contents.

“You know,” Yang quietly said, “suddenly Ruby’s attempts after that to ‘unlock her eye-lasers’ when she was younger suddenly isn’t as funny anymore.”

“Yeah…” Jaune whispered as he focused on Ruby once more.

* * *

 

_November 2 nd, 5:00 PM_

“Bruce, I’m telling you. Whatever Ruby has, it ain’t magic,” Zatanna emphasized to Batman and the rest of the League founders. Constantine and Fate were standing alongside her, and the British occultist took a long drag of his cigarette and nodded.

“I ran every single detection and scrying spell I know,” he added, breathing out a ring of smoke. “I got absolutely nothing. If I didn’t know any better, I’d almost say that little Miss Martian saw things that weren’t real.”

“Were they?” Batman asked, and Doctor Fate nodded.

“Indeed, they were. M’gann M’orzz’ recollection of the sequence of events inside young Raven Roth’s mind was accurate.” He twirled his hands around, forming a scaled-model of the three teenager’s fight against Trigon. J’onn J’onzz frowned slightly at the sight of his adopted niece almost getting pushed into the boiling magma, but he was reluctantly used to this scene by now. When Ruby screamed and her eyes exploded into light, the League members focused on it intensely.

“Well,” Flash began, “obviously something happened. And you’re certain this isn’t magic?”

“One-hundred percent,” Zatanna answered with pursed lips. “Ruby’s eyes were something else entirely.”

“That might explain why we didn’t detect it before,” Superman suggested, rubbing his fingers against his chin. “Were you able to determine why it only happened now?”

“Yes, actually,” Constantine answered, putting out his cigarette. “It appears that Ruby’s eyes were, for lack of a better word, off during her time here.”

“’Off?’” Batman asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes, ‘off.’ I know it isn’t the most technical term, but it’s the one that best fits. Basically, Ruby’s eyes are apparently tuned to a certain frequency, which coincidentally matches up perfectly with the Grimm. If the Grimm aren’t there, her eyes are just that: eyes. But, if there happen to be Grimm hanging around, her eyes turn ‘on’, just waiting to be used.”

“Then how come Trigon and Raven were affected?” Wonder Woman asked, although in Raven’s case, all Ruby’s eyes did was give her a light sunburn.

“Trigon’s very nature,” Doctor Fate suggested. “He’s more a construct of evil than actual matter, which closely aligned with that of the Grimm. Coupled with his magic coursing through them, it created enough of a match for Ruby’s eyes to count them as one and the same. Raven was mostly spared because of her half-human heritage, although her demon-side made it so that she didn’t escape completely unscathed.”

“Alright, that answers a few questions.” Superman stood up and sighed, rubbing the back of his head.

“But not the most important one,” Batman added, bringing his hands together. “If Ruby’s eyes aren’t related to magic…then what are they?”

The League all sat in silence, Superman staring out over the planet. Thoughts raced through his mind as he tried to think of possibilities, yet none were forthcoming. As he and the others continued to think, he heard a flurry of footsteps racing towards them. He turned his head to look at the door, his friends following his lead even though they couldn’t hear what he did. Eventually, as the footsteps got closer, they did, until finally the automatic door opened with a hiss. They saw M’gann looking into the room, slightly out of breath, but with a relieved look on her face.

“It’s Ruby,” she said. “She woke up.”

* * *

 

By the time the League Founders made their way towards Ruby’s room, the young huntress was surrounded by her friends and teammates. To their relief, Ruby was standing without issue, although she was visibly weak. At times, Weiss had to keep her up, but the young girl didn’t seem to mind.

“The next thing I knew,” she explained, telling the older superheroes that they had caught them at the tail end of their current discussion, “the world turned white. After that, nothing.”

“You have no idea what caused it?” Jaune asked, clearly worried, but Ruby shook her head.

“Nothing. It just…” Ruby paused, pursing her lips, then noticed that the League founders were standing outside the room. “Oh, Superman!”

The other teenage heroes turned to face the new guests, smiling as the founders entered the room.

“Hello, Ruby,” Superman greeted with a smile. “How are you feeling?”

“Eh, you know,” Ruby replied with a roll of her shoulders, “a little tired, but all in all pretty good.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” Wonder Woman said, first smiling warmly then turning more serious. “Pardon for the intrusion, but… We were hoping we could have a chance to talk.”

“About what I did?” Ruby asked, and the superheroes nodded. She awkwardly shifted, feeling more and more pairs of eyes focusing on her. “Do you…mind if we talk in here? With my team?”

“Of course, Rubes,” Flash acquiesced, briefly zipping out of the room and returning with enough chairs for everyone to sit on. He also had a bag of chips in his hand, and seeing Green Lantern’s light glare, shrugged without remorse. Ruby laughed at Flash’s antics, then claimed a chair and sat down. Taking her cue, the other heroes did the same, and everyone focused their attention on her.

“Start from the beginning, please,” Batman suggested, and Ruby nodded.

“Well, I guess it started when we were fighting Trigon,” Ruby started. “So much happened in there. All the Grimm, the anger, the heat… But even through all of that, I didn’t feel any different. I was angry at Trigon for what he did and what he was doing, sure, but not enough to shoot lasers out of my eyes.”

“It was more of a wave,” M’gann corrected. Rather than take offense, Ruby nodded.

“Right, a wave.”

“What changed? Something had to have happened for your eyes to trigger,” Batman continued, and Ruby thought hard.

“I…guess it was when we were about to lose,” Ruby admitted. Yang couldn’t help but clench her fist at Ruby’s admission, feeling shame that she wasn’t there to help her sister when she needed her most. Weiss and Blake felt the same, along with JNPR.

Ruby continued, “Trigon was just too powerful. We were playthings to him, and by the end of it all, we realized it. Garfield was knocked out, his injuries finally catching up to him, M’gann was about to be shoved into lava, and he broke Crescent Rose.” Ruby frowned at the fate her beloved weapon and looked at the League members. “How is she, by the way?”

Wonder Woman frowned sadly and sighed. She knew just how important that sniper-scythe was to the young girl. “Raven tried to save as much as she could, but… I’m sorry, Ruby.”

“Oh…” Ruby looked down and twiddled her thumbs. She didn’t quite know how to feel about Crescent Rose’s utter destruction. Better it than herself or her friends, certainly, but Crescent Rose was her weapon. She put her soul into it, and to hear that it was destroyed beyond repair made her feel a little empty.

“I lost Crocea Mors, too,” Jaune admitted, trying to show sympathy. “Blood tore its hilt from the blade, and we’re still trying to figure out what to do.”

“Oh, Jaune, that weapon was with your family for generations.” Ruby shifted focus to Jaune, knowing that the loss of his weapon was like her own. Although she always found Crocea Mors to be somewhat plain in function, there was no denying the history and importance that weapon held to the Arc family. It had survived wars, Grimm, alien invasions, and so much more. Now it was gone, broken by a literal demon.

“Yeah…” Jaune sighed. “At least it went out in glory.”

“I saw that video,” Nora spoke up. “That was _badass_ , Fearless Leader. Blood was like ‘nehyeah! I’mma break it then throw it at you’ and you’re like ‘not today!’ and then you caught it and threw it back.”

“I agree with Nora,” Yang stated through a smile. “By the way, thanks for punching him in the face for me.”

Jaune blushed and awkwardly rubbed the back of his head. “…Thank you…”

“We’re losing focus,” Batman interjected, bringing everyone’s focus back to him. “Ruby, please continue.”

“Oh, right.” Ruby recomposed herself, rubbing her hands along her thighs, and breathed softly. “Anyway, things were getting bad. I was able to convince myself that we could still win, but as my friends began to fall… Trigon admitted he beat you guys, that he would torture you and make me watch. Then Raven’s shield fell, and he prepared to kill her, and after that…everything turned white.”

“Hmm,” Batman hummed while Hawkgirl leaned forward.

“An emotional trigger?” she suggested, looking at Green Lantern for assistance.

“It’s certainly possible,” John Stewart admitted. “The power rings work in similar ways. It sounds like the sight of your friends almost dying is what allowed you to use your ‘silver-eye powers’. Stress, maybe?”

“What I don’t understand is why now? Why not earlier?” Weiss asked, looking at the older heroes expectedly.

“We have a theory,” Martian Manhunter replied. “It appears that your silver-eyes require a certain ‘frequency’ near you in order to be primed. That frequency matches the Grimm perfectly, while Trigon himself was a close match. Perhaps that is why your eyes didn’t activate around Brainiac.”

“That matches the stories,” Blake whispered, her eyes drifting over to the upside-down tablet resting on her bed. She turned her attention back towards the Justice League founders and frowned. “Since you guys know more about this than we do, any thoughts on what they are?”

“Unfortunately, nothing,” Flash reluctantly admitted. “All we know is that they aren’t magic in origin. They’re something else.”

“Which is why we need your perspective,” Batman emphasized. “Is there anything else, anything at all, that you remember about what happened when you used your powers?”

“No, nothing that…” Ruby paused, and scrunched her face. “Actually…there was something kinda weird.”

“Weird? How?” Superman asked in concern. Ruby looked back up at the Kryptonian then down at her hands. She was rubbing them together nervously, but eventually mustered up the courage to continue.

“Just before my eyes…did their thing,” she began, “I saw…words flash in my mind.”

“Words?” Koriand’r asked, clearly confused. When she saw the shocked expressions run across the older heroes’ and M’gann’ faces, however, she became concerned.

“The words. What were they?” Batman pointedly asked, his eyes boring into Ruby’s. She suddenly felt even more nervous than before and rubbed her upper right arm.

“Ruby, listen to me very carefully,” Wonder Woman calmly said, “I need you to tell me what words you saw.”

Ruby looked at the heroes, her gaze shifting from one after another, before settling on the sympathetic look of Superman. Finally, she sighed and locked gazes with him.

“It was fragments, mostly,” she answered, “but I do remember what they were.”

“And?” Green Lantern asked, a pit forming in his stomach. Ruby took another breath, then suddenly stood up.

“Can I borrow a pen?” she asked. Batman quickly pulled one out of his utility belt and tossed it to her. Ruby caught it then calmly grabbed a notepad hanging off a bed. She scribbled some words, then quietly handed it over to Superman. He somberly read it, the other heroes crowding around him. After what seemed like an eternity, Superman calmly placed the notepad face first onto his lap and turned to face the other founders. He nodded, and they nodded back. Batman then pressed two fingers to the side of his cowl.

“Orion, I need you to come to the medical bay. Now.”

* * *

 

Teams RWBY and JNPR had seen Orion on occasion. His red suit and silver helmet were very distinctive, along with his highly serious demeanor. The man could put Batman in a run for his money in that department. Still, they thought that man was simply another costumed hero from Earth, maybe from an allied world similar to Hawkgirl, Miss Martian, and Martian Manhunter.

So it was a surprise when they found that Orion was neither of those things. Instead, he was a New God, holding a mother box over Ruby’s head.

“So,” Ruby quietly began, “you’re a—”

“Do not talk right now,” Orion interrupted, and Ruby shrunk back into her bed.

‘ _Definitely serious,_ ’ Yang thought as she frowned at how seemingly callous the New God was.

“Don’t mind him,” Wonder Woman reassured her, knowing that Orion could be hard to deal with at times. “I can assure you that he’s only being hard on her because he cares.”

“Hmm, could be a little better at showing it,” Yang grumbled, and the rest of her team nodded in agreement. The mother box then beeped, prompting Orion to remove it from Ruby’s vicinity and hold it up to his face. A light shone from the device into his eyes, and his frown deepened.

“Well?” Flash asked, and slowly Orion turned to face them.

“Companionship, plus understanding, joy, and love,” Orion spoke. “Fragments of those words coursed through Ruby’s mind when her eyes activated.”

“Sounds like Ruby,” Jaune admitted, “but I don’t see how those words showing up is a problem.”

“The _problem_ isn’t those words,” Orion stated, “it’s where those words came from.”

“Came from? What do you mean?” Blake asked, and Martian Manhunter leaned forward across his chair.

“Are any of you familiar with Martian philosophy?” he asked.

“No.”

“Unfortunately.”

“Yes, actually,” Weiss admitted, prompting the others to stare at her in slight surprise. “What? M’gann lent me some books. They believed that everything in existence could be explained through mathematics. It’s fascinating.”

There was a slight pause as everyone contemplated her statement. For their part, J’onn and M’gann looked grateful that Weiss appreciated their culture, but they had to focus on more important matters.

“Weiss being a nerd aside—”

“Hey!”

“and please do not take this the wrong way, but what’s so important about Martian philosophy?” Yang asked, and Martian Manhunter shook his head.

“Do not worry, Yang. I took no offense, and your question is a pertinent one. I could spend years discussing the finer details of my people’s culture, but I would rather focus on what pertains to young Ruby.”

He briefly looked at Ruby, took a deep breath, and began to explain, “Weiss’ statement was accurate. My people were philosophers and scientists. We believed that everything in the universe could be explained through mathematics, from its natural laws to more esoteric properties. Eventually, however, our greatest philosophers had a theory: they could prove that life itself had meaning, that life was worth living. Over the centuries, the theory had many names, but it came to be known as the Life Equation.”

“The Life Equation?” Blake asked, her eyes widening. “Wait, isn’t that-?”

“No,” J’onn interrupted, “the Life Equation was not the focus of Darkseid’s invasion, although the concepts are related. Regardless, my people never finished the calculation before the Imperium invaded. A few major discoveries were made, however, including the very words that coursed through Ruby’s mind.”

“They also discovered that the Emotional Electromagnetic Spectrum were components of it,” Green Lantern added. “The Life Equation apparently took many different forms, one of which was composed of all seven colors of the spectrum: the Red Light of Rage, Orange of Avarice, Yellow of Fear, Green of Will, Blue of Hope, Indigo of Compassion, and Violet of Love. When combined, they make up the White Light of Life. It was after that discovery that people began to take the theory seriously.”

“Indeed,” J’onn J’onzz agreed, then continued. “The Life Equation does exist, and is one of the most powerful forces in the universe. So the fact that your eyes are somehow connect to even a fragment of it is…alarming.”

“…That’s a word for it,” Ruby quietly stated, her mind reeling from the revelation. Her eyes were connected to life itself? That didn’t make any sense, yet at the same time she believed it. She couldn’t help but feel scared, however, which the League noticed.

“Ruby, it’s going to be alright,” Superman calmed her, walking over to place his hand comfortingly on her shoulder. He then looked at the rest of the room’s inhabitants with an utmost serious expression. “None of what was discussed leaves this room, understand?”

“Of course,” they all immediately agreed, even Orion. Part of the New God wanted to notify Highfather and New Genesis of this development, but at the same time knew that might not be the best course of action for the young girl. He knew Highfather would never harm her, but there was the possibility of her being taken to New Genesis, away from her friends, so that she could focus entirely on her gift. To be turned against Darkseid. Orion wouldn’t allow that just yet, and he trusted the League to help her on her own terms.

“If it’s all the same to you,” Orion began as he walked towards the door, “I’m going to get back to work.”

“Of course. Thank you, Orion,” Superman said, and Orion nodded before walking out of the door, it automatically closing behind him. Another silence descended over the heroes as they digested the information, not quite knowing how to proceed.

“Well…” Jaune finally said, “I certainly learned something new today.”

“Understatement of the century,” Nora added. “Now what?”

* * *

 

Consciousness slowly returned to Garfield Logan. First it was an incessant beeping, which he recognized as that of a heartbeat monitor. Then same sight, which first was blurry then faded back into focus. Sensation returned to his fingers, and he twitched them slightly before clutching them together. He felt only the soft fabric of hospital bed sheets, and a quick look outside of his window told him that he was in the Watchtower. He assumed that the Justice League must have picked him up for medical treatment, and he tried to push himself off the bed only to immediately fall back down in pain.

“…ow…” he groaned.

“I wouldn’t recommend doing that just yet,” he heard a female’s voice stoically advise. Garfield recognized the voice and quickly turned his head towards the source, where he saw Raven, with her hood down, sitting on a chair next to him. She had a black tome in her hand, but Garfield didn’t care about that.

“Rae… You’re…?” he began, but Raven smiled and nodded.

“Yeah, I’m okay. So are the others, by the way, although Ruby had a…development,” Raven answered. Garfield wondered just what this ‘development’ was, but figured he could ask about it later. Right now, his best friend was sitting before him, perfectly fine outside of what appeared to be a light sunburn. Garfield tried to speak, only to feel his dry throat constrict. His words turned into a coughing sputter, to which Raven calmly grabbed a cup of water with her telekinesis, bringing it over to her friend.

“Here, drink,” she said, lowering its straw to Garfield’s lips. Part of him felt annoyed at being treated like a child, but he was so weak he honestly didn’t care. He greedily sipped the life-giving liquid, drinking it until there was nothing left.

“Gah… Thanks,” Garfield finally got out as Raven took the cup back and placed it on a small table alongside her book. She waited patiently for her friend to get this thoughts together, saying nothing until he finally mustered the strength to speak once more.

“What… What happened?” he asked, and Raven nodded.

“After you, Ruby, and M’gann went inside my head, my body was forced to fight the others. I nearly killed them,” Raven admitted, frowning in shame for a moment before cutting Garfield’s rebuttal off. “I know it wasn’t my fault, but I was forced to watch, unable to do anything to stop it.”

“He forced you to watch? Why?”

“An effort to completely break me,” she answered immediately. “It nearly worked…until you, Ruby, and M’gann showed up to stop him. Garfield, I thought you had died when you fell from the Tower, and seeing you there… I can’t even describe how I felt.”

“I can only imagine,” Garfield admitted. “But what happened after that? The last thing I remember is us losing.”

“You all were,” Raven replied with another frown. “But, as it turns out, Ruby’s eyes are a little mores special than any of us thought. She banished Trigon from my mind, allowing the rest of us who were still standing to finish Blood off.”

“You mean…?”

“Yes.” Raven smiled. “We won, Gar. Brother Blood’s been arrested, his entire church has been branded an international terrorist organization, his finances seized, and his last remaining followers are being hunted down by the CIA, FBI, DEO, and that’s just in the United States. He’s done for, reduced to nothing more than a raving lunatic in his cell.”

Slowly, Garfield felt a smile blossom across his face. Hearing that Brother Blood, one of their biggest adversaries, was finally brought to justice was something he’d wanted to hear for years. The slippery bastard had always managed to slip away from justice, but even he couldn’t dodge forever. Garfield then frowned as he remembered the other half of the equation, and looked at Raven.

“What about Trigon?” he asked, and to his surprise, Raven’s smile widened.

“He’s gone, sealed away in a place he can never escape from,” she revealed, tapping her finger against the chakra embedded in her forehead. Garfield’s eyes widened and he shot up, immediately falling down as his body squealed in protest.

“Gar, I told you. You need to take it easy for now,” she emphasized, moving closer to his bed while surging healing magic into him. The magic felt good to the changeling, but he didn’t care about that.

“Rae, you…sealed Trigon in yourself? Why?” he asked, begging to know. He trusted his friend without question, but sealing her demonic father in her mind was a leap too big for him to grasp. Luckily for Garfield, Raven had anticipated his question, and immediately began to answer.

“M’gann told me that Ruby’s eyes are…special beyond their unique eye color. They apparently had some sort of anti-Grimm properties, and my father, being an entity composed almost entirely of evil, was a close match. The wave she sent out _crippled_ him, in more ways than one. That entire last battle was him running on reserves. He’s practically a mute compared to what he used be, now.”

“That’s…good to hear. Wait, if it affected your dad, did it-?”

“It gave me a sunburn, yes. We’re not telling Ruby that.”

Garfield thought the decision over, then immediately agreed. “Yeah, that probably wouldn’t be best for her right now.”

“Indeed. Still, there was another reason why I decided to imprison my father within me.”

Garfield leaned to the side. “And that is?”

Raven took a moment, looking down at her feet. “My father was able to accomplish what he did because we didn’t know about it until it was too late. He was able to work in the shadows, move his pieces across the board, all without my knowledge. By putting him in my mind, under constant supervision, he can’t do that ever again. Especially with his current state.

“And,” Raven looked back, staring into Garfield’s eyes, “when I die, he goes with me.”

Garfield stared into her purple eyes and gulped. “That’s…morbid, but I trust you. If anyone can hold your father down, it’s you.”

Raven smiled, reaching her hand to clasp his own. “Thank you, Garfield.”

“No problem, Rae. We’re friends, and we always will be.”

To his surprise, Raven actually frowned at his answer. Garfield briefly wondered how his answer could be interpreted wrong, only for Raven’s eyes to narrow. With utmost conviction on her part, and complete shock on Garfield’s, Raven suddenly lifted the sheets to his bed and let herself under them.

“Raven, what are you-?” he began, only to be stopped as Raven began to cuddle him.

“I’m tired,” she answered, snuggling in along his side. His mind went blank as he barely comprehended what was happening.

“Uhh…”

“Do you have a problem with me resting here?” she pointedly asked, as if daring him to say otherwise, but Garfield shook his head.

“No, no! Not at all!” he answered frantically. A soft smile formed on Raven’s face as her eyes began to droop. She must have been more tired than he had assumed, and before long she had fallen peacefully asleep. As she breathed softly, Garfield felt a sense of calm fall over him. As he, too, drifted off into slumber, he couldn’t help but feel that cuddling with Raven felt…nice.

A few minutes later, M’gann entered her brother’s medical room to check on him, only to find him sleeping in bed with Raven cuddled next to him. She gasped, first in shock then in joy. Happy that her brother and his best friend had finally taken the next step in their long-overdue, in her humble opinion, relationship, M’gann quietly snapped a picture on her phone and sent it out to the rest of the Titans along with teams RWBY and JNPR. It was captioned by a bolded and italicized ‘It’s Happening!’, then clicked send.

A few moments later, a happy, high-pitched squeal echoed through the Watchtower as Koriand’r took one look at the cute picture. At the same time, Blake Belladonna cupped her feline ears as the high-pitched noise tore through them, causing her to scream out in pain.

“Kori, what the hell?!”

“Blake, I am the so sorry!”

* * *

 

_November 3 rd, 3:00 AM_

_Metropolis_

Lex Luthor was roused from his slumber by a low-sounding boom, followed by a vibration. He took a glance at the digital clock resting by his bed and frowned. Without saying a word, he rose from his bed, leaving his partner behind, and quietly draped a robe around himself. He walked to his high rise’s kitchen, opening the liquor cabinet and pulling out a bottle of scotch alongside two glass cups. When he closed the door, he pointedly ignored the person floating outside of his window, calmly pouring himself two glasses.

“Lex,” Superman angrily greeted him, but Lex Luthor calmly finished pouring his drinks, placed the bottle back inside the cabinet, and turned to face him.

“Hello, Superman, and at such early hours, too. Tell me, are you always up at three in the morning?” Lex asked, grabbing a glass at the same time. “Please, be my guest. Come in, have a drink. You’ve already woken me up.”

“You know why I’m here,” Superman got to the point. Rather than answer, Lex merely took a drink and placed the glass down.

“And what, pray tell, did I do this time?” Lex asked, although he already knew the answer. He just wanted the alien to say it.

“The Grimm in Jump City,” Superman answered, confirming Lex’s assumption.

“Terrible business, over there,” Lex said as he walked over to a fine leather chair, Superman floating after him outside his window. “Hard to believe that maniac managed to get his hands on them, especially after you so empathically stated they were all destroyed.”

“Don’t play coy with me, Lex. You and I both know that you got your hands on samples that day, and that you’ve been selling them. Brother Blood was one of your clients.”

“Hmm, a scandalous accusation, Superman,” Lex calmly stated, crossing his leg over the other and bringing his fingers together. “Do you have any proof to back those claims up?”

Superman didn’t answer, and Lex allowed himself to smile. “Oh, that’s right. You don’t, just like every other accusation you’ve ever leveled at me. It’s honestly quite pathetic. But alright, let’s play your little game. Let’s say, for the sake of discussion, that I did manage to get my hands on samples of the Grimm that day, that I studied them and subsequently sold them. What laws would I have been breaking?”

“You sold weapons and the Grimm to a terrorist organization,” Superman reminded Lex, but the billionaire waved him off.

“The last I checked, the Grimm are neither alive nor are they part of any lists of banned substances, weapons of mass destruction, or otherwise. After all, what need was there when the oh-so-mighty Superman told everyone that they were all killed.”

Superman frowned and crossed his arms. “And the fact that you sold them to Blood?”

“Oh, you still want to play this game. Alright, let’s continue. I admit, the weapons Brother Blood had for his army were of LexCorp make. But no financial transaction ever occurred between LexCorp and the Church of Blood for any such shipment. In fact, those weapons he was using were stolen months ago off the coast of Qurac by pirates. You can check the records, if you wish. It’s all in there. However, I must admit that my company did have a small business relationship with the Church of Blood. Most companies did, to some compacity. Mostly charity work and associated contributions. Are they to be charged with aiding a terrorist organization, too, one that only had that illustrious designation bestowed upon just yesterday? Tell me, how was I supposed to know that their Allfather was Trigon the Terrible? The last I checked, I don’t believe in any gods, evil or otherwise.”

Superman frowned, while Lex merely smiled. A silent conversation was brewing between the two of them, the true meaning of their words coming in behind the ones spoken. As the Man of Steel stared into Lex’s eyes, the bald man calmly got up and walked over to the window.

“Tell me,” Lex began, “what do you see when you look at me with those eyes? Do you feel hate, anger? Or do you feel anything at all? I must admit, I still don’t know the answer. But, I do know what I see in them. While the masses below may believe you to be their savior, I know differently. When I look into your eyes, Superman, I don’t see humanity’s salvation. I see its destruction.”

Superman frowned sadly at Lex’s answer. For how brilliant Lex was, he could never see beyond his own ego. Despite all the pain Lex had caused, Superman didn’t hate him. He pitied him and felt sorrow at how Lex wasted his life and potential. Superman then steeled himself again, and looked into Lex’s eyes.

“This isn’t over, Lex. One day, you will go down.”

“You’ve been saying that for years,” Lex declared as Superman flew off. Lex watched the alien fly off high into the atmosphere, forming a faint contrail behind him. When the alien finally disappeared from view, Lex calmly walked back over to his kitchen, downed the extra glass of scotch, and walked back to his bed. Mercy was still asleep, or more likely pretending to be, and he didn’t bother waking her up as he got back into bed. He didn’t fall back asleep, however, his thoughts running wild.

As much as he hated to admit it, the alien was right about one thing. Selling the Grimm to Brother Blood had proved to be a mistake, one that could have proven to be disastrous. The next batch would have to have more safeguards in place to prevent such calamitous events from occurring again. To prevent his loss of control. Ideas were forming in his head, and Lex allowed himself to smile before finally drifting off once more.

* * *

 

_November 3 rd, 8:00 AM_

_Watchtower, Geosynchronous Orbit, Earth_

By the next morning, the teenagers had recovered enough to be allowed out of the med bay, with Garfield being confined to a wheelchair. His friends were giving him and Raven knowing smirks, causing the changeling to cover his face with his hands in embarrassment. Raven, meanwhile, lightly glared at M’gann for daring to take that picture in the first place and sharing it, even if it was adorable. She vowed to get back at her, even if she didn’t quite know how just yet.

Right now, however, teams RWBY, JNPR, and the Titans were making up for lost time, specifically on a matter they unfortunately weren’t able to properly celebrate.

“Happy sixteenth birthday, Ruby,” Dick stated as he carried a strawberry cake with white icing to their table. The group were currently inside one of the Watchtower’s many holographic training rooms, with it currently set to a nice, tropical beach. Even if they knew on a fundamental level it was all fake, the cool breeze rushing against their faces and the soft sand beneath their feet was more than enough to wash the stress of the past few days away.

Ruby smiled as she looked at her friends’ faces and the lit candles on top of her birthday cake. She took a deep breath and blew them all out, then proceeded to carefully slice the cake into separate pieces, handing each off to her friends one at a time. She saved the last, biggest piece for herself, but didn’t dig in just yet. Instead, Ruby patiently waited as her friends brought out a single large gift, and smiled.

“I know it isn’t much, but…” Yang began, “…all of our other gifts kinda got blown up.”

“Eh, it’s fine,” Ruby said, waving her sister off. “I got him back.”

“That you did, little dude,” Garfield replied through a smile, which Ruby reciprocated. Seeing her friends urge her on, Ruby greedily tore open the package, revealing a red and black metal box. Slowly, Ruby began to realize just what was inside the container, and with a newfound reverence, opened the box to reveal the encased remains of Crescent Rose protected by a glass sheet, preserving it for eternity.

“After we defeated my father,” Raven quietly spoke, “I went back to try and see what I could find. This was all that was left.”

“I…see,” Ruby whispered. She had known that her prized weapon was completely destroyed, but to see the remains in person was a different experience. Crescent Rose had been with her for years, having built it back in Signal. It got her through much, from Grimm, schoolyard spars, criminals, all the way the up to alien invasions and demons. Tears threatened to stream out of her eyes, but Ruby held it in and looked up at Raven.

“I love it. Thank you,” Ruby finally got out, causing her friends to smile ruefully. They could tell she was hurting, but knew she would able to rise past it.

“If you want,” Victor began, “you and I can get to work on rebuilding her. The Watchtower has some pretty impressive forging facilities here.”

“No thanks, Victor,” Ruby replied. “If it’s all the same to you…I’d like to build Crescent Rose 2.0 myself.”

Rather than feel insulted, Victor nodded in understanding. “I can respect that. Mind if I at least forward you some suggestions?”

“By all means,” Ruby replied as she stood up and paced. “Honestly, I’ve been giving it some thought, and I think all of our weapons need substantial upgrades. Trigon’s attack has opened my eyes – Yang, don’t you dare.”

“Dare what?” Yang asked, confused at Ruby’s sudden accusation. Her half-sister merely glared at her, and finally Yang shrugged. “Fine, I won’t laugh at your pun.”

“Thank you.” Ruby smirked victoriously, then continued. “Anyway, the fact remains that we were underprepared for Trigon on all levels. Our weapons were ineffective, with the only exception being Jaune’s Nth Metal Grenades and Weiss’ Nth Metal powder.”

“My thoughts exactly,” Weiss agreed, understanding where her leader was coming from. After all, she had helped Ruby organize her thoughts on this very topic just before the party started. “I think its time that we take a much more proactive approach towards threats and how we prepare for them. That means entirely new functionalities, materials, and things we would have never considered. I’ve already prepared a list of materials we can acquire through the League’s logistics department, including Nth Metal and depleted promethium.”

“Promethium? What is that?” Jaune asked, feeling intrigued.

“One of, if not _the_ , strongest materials known to man,” Victor answered, only for Donna to huff. “Sorry, known to humanity.”

“Thank you, Victor.”

“Really? That could be useful,” Yang admitted. “How come you didn’t suggest it earlier?”

“Cause the stuff is super expensive,” Dick answered, “and we didn’t have the funding.”

“That will no longer be the case,” they heard a gruff voice speak out, prompting them to turn and regard Batman as he entered the makeshift beach. He was holding a parcel in his hand, which the teams noticed as he walked over towards them. Ruby scooched over on her bench, motioning for Batman to sit down next to her. Batman thought for a moment, then decided to take Ruby up on her offer.

“Sup, B-man,” Yang called out through a toothy smile.

“Yang. I trust your arm is feeling better?” he asked, and Yang flashed a thumbs up.

“Better today, but the doc says I won’t lose the cast til tomorrow. Part of me says that I should just say ‘screw it’ and flex it off, but I won’t.”

“Good, because that would be stupid. Especially given how you got it from a dumb movie,” Blake mumbled, but Yang shot her partner a look.

“The _Fast and the Furious_ franchise is a cinematic masterpiece, and you will not convince me otherwise.”

Garfield, Victor, Jaune, and Ruby silently nodded in agreement while Donna, Raven, and Weiss shook their heads with Blake.

“It’s meat-headed stupidity,” Blake countered.

“The last movie had them race a nuke through Apokolips while the Rock fired a heavy machine gun at Parademons, blew up Darkseid’s army, and jumped through a Boom Tube just before his Omega Beams disintegrated them. All with cars.”

“… Okay, that was pretty cool.”

“Ah-hah!”

As the teenagers playfully argued, Batman remained silent. He didn’t want to interrupt, and in all honesty, seeing them act like this was a comfort to him. It meant that they were recovering, even if not fully just yet. Eventually, the conversation died down, and the teens refocused their attentions back towards him.

 “I take it that from your conversation, everything is going well?”

“Well,” Ruby took a moment to look at everyone’s faces, then turned back, “yeah. I’d say we are.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” Batman admitted, placing the parcel onto the table. “Before I say anything, I want to say that you all did good work in Jump City. You recognized a problem and proactively worked to end it before it could get any worse. You saved a lot of lives down there, and you should all feel proud of that.”

The teenage heroes, even Dick Grayson, smiled at the rare helping of Batman’s praise. At the same time, however, Dick felt that Batman was here for more than just a congratulatory visit, causing his eyes to glance at the parcel. He wondered what was in it, but trusted that his father would reveal it momentarily.

“Also, happy birthday, Ruby.”

“Thank you!” Ruby smiled, then went silent as Batman turned his attention towards his adopted son.

“Where will you and your team be staying?” he asked, and Dick nodded.

“Titans Tower was, unfortunately, completely destroyed. Victor thinks it’ll take months before it’s livable again, and that’s not including the various upgrades I know he’ll implement to ensure this _never_ happens again.”

“I’m not even gonna protest that, cuz’ he’s right,” Victor acquiesced, and Dick smirked before continuing.

“Luckily, however, I kept that old lease on my Jump City apartment from a few years back. Figured it might come in handy one day, and it should be enough to hold all of us.”

“Does that include RWBY and JNPR?” Batman asked, and Dick moved to answer but paused. He ran through the floor plan of his apartment, calculating the amount of space needed for fifteen people, then sighed.

“It’d be cramped, but… I think we could manage it.”

“Richard,” Pyrrha stated, “please don’t make yourself uncomfortable on our accounts.”

“You heard him, we have the room,” Garfield insisted, despite him knowing that they really didn’t. M’gann gave her brother a look, and coupled with the sad expressions on the teenagers’ faces, they knew, too. Garfield sighed and crossed his arms. “Man, this bites.”

“Tell me about it, BB,” Nora stated. “Was really beginning to like hanging out with you guys.”

“Yeah…” Garfield frowned and looked down at his feet, a sense of sadness permeating off him. Raven rubbed his shoulder sympathetically, prompting Garfield to gently clasp her hand with his own. “Are you guys sure?”

“Don’t worry about us,” Ren said. “We’ll be able find a place to stay. Worst comes to worst, we can always stay in the Watchtower again. Regardless, despite how it ended, we all appreciated our time with you all.”

Victor and the other Titans smiled. “Thanks, Ren.”

Then, one by one, the Titans and team RWBYJNPR gave each other farewell hugs. It was a bittersweet moment. Although they had only known each other for a short time, their mutual friendships were strong and intense. They meant every word they said, every hug filled with emotion. Finally, when they were all done, they sat back down and refocused back towards Batman.

“We’ll have to go shopping again,” Weiss said, “before we can move back into our rooms in the Watchtower. Most of our spare cloths were…destroyed.”

“I already took the liberty of repurchasing your spare clothes,” Batman revealed, taking the former heiress back.

“Oh… Why thank you. The gesture is much appreciated.”

“Something tells me that isn’t the only gesture you guys are about to get,” Dick declared before standing up. Nodding at his father, he quickly led the Titans out of the room, insisting that whatever Batman wanted to say, it was best done in relative privacy. Before long, only Batman and the eight Remnantians were left on the hard light beach, and for a long while, there was only silence.

“So… What’s this about?” Nora finally asked, and Batman sighed. Then, to their surprise, he lifted the top of his cowl off of his head, revealing the chiseled face of Bruce Wayne.

“… I knew it,” Weiss smugly declared, happy that her assumption proved to be correct.

“You really are Bruce Wayne,” Jaune breathed out. He had of course believed Weiss when she had told them her suspicions following Mumbo’s rampage, but seeing the confirmation was still a shock. Mostly towards the fact that the reclusive Dark Knight was bold enough to flat-out reveal his face to them. Out of respect, they waited for him to make the first move, which Bruce eventually took.

“You don’t have to stay in the Watchtower,” Bruce revealed, prompting the Remnantians to raise their eyebrows.

“We don’t?” Yang asked. “I mean, not that I don’t like living up here, what with the out of this world view, but if we don’t live up here then where would we stay? It’s not like any of us have jobs yet.”

The subject of employment outside of their hero work was something both teams had discussed. After seeing the Titans and other superheroes tend to their needs for the past two months, they were beginning to feel a little like freeloaders. Given how being superheroes didn’t exactly pay the bills on Earth, they were beginning to seriously consider the prospect.

“You guys aren’t kicking us out, are you?” Nora asked with a pointed stare, to which Bruce shook his head.

“Not at all. I only wanted to let you know that there are other options,” Bruce replied, causing the teenagers to fall silent.

“… What do you mean, ‘other options?’” Jaune asked, and Bruce began to open the parcel.

“I have a high rise property in Metropolis, one that is big enough to accommodate all of your needs.”

Bruce’s revelation caused the Remnantians to go silent. Bruce Wayne was _offering_ to give them their own high rise? That was certainly an unexpected development, but the look on the billionaire’s face told them that he wasn’t done.

“However, as the individual in charge of your training and development, and given recent revelations, I would prefer another option. One that would place us in closer proximity.”

“And that would be?” Yang asked, leaning forward, and Bruce looked them all in the eyes.

“I’m offering for you all to come live with me in Wayne Manor.” As the teenagers stared at him in absolute shock, Bruce pulled out the contents of the parcel, revealing them to be slips of paper. He slid them over to each individual, where they took a quick glance down at them to see that they were citizenship papers. As they looked them over, Bruce pulled his cowl over his head and stood up, preparing to walk out.

“I’m not insisting upon anything. If none of you want to take either of my offers, I won’t force you.”

With that statement, Bruce walked towards the door, it automatically sliding open as he neared.

“Wait,” Ruby called out, halting Bruce in his tracks. “Before you go, and before we make any decision, I have to ask. Why? Why do you want us to come live with you?”

Bruce thought over how he would answer her. He considered a simple ‘as your teacher’-type of response but felt that wasn’t sufficient. It wasn’t enough, neither to him nor the young heroes. With a serious expression, Bruce turned to face them, and looked Ruby in the eyes.

“Even if our circumstances are different, I know what it’s like to lose everything in the blink of an eye.”

No one responded, knowing at an instant what tragedy Bruce Wayne was referring to, one that had defined him. They all stared at each other, and before long Bruce nodded at them and walked away, leaving team RWBYJNPR to ruminate among themselves.

The next morning, after saying goodbye to their friends, all eight teenagers were teleported down to the Earth’s surface. They arrived in a field next to a country road, seemingly in the middle of nowhere. Patiently, they wait for their ride, and before long saw a black limousine drove towards them. As it got closer, they made out the stylized ‘W’-logo on its side, telling them who owned it. The car slowed to a halt in front of them, and the driver’s door opened to reveal a balding man with a thin moustache. He was sharply dressed in a black suit over a white button-down shirt, a black bow-tie looped around his neck.

“Hello, young Masters,” the man greeted with a bow as he opened the door for them. “My name is Alfred Pennyworth, and I wish to welcome you to Wayne Manor.”

* * *

 

_Unknown System, Occupied Planet_

_Bottled City of Vale_

Ozpin sat atop Beacon Tower, sitting in his office has he stared out over what was left of Vale. He was alone, leaving him to his thoughts. It had been nearly two months since Brainiac’s invasion, since the fall of Vale. Since Remnant’s destruction. It was still hard for him to fully wrap his head around what had happened. In only two days, his entire world was upended and destroyed, millions of innocent people killed, and that was just in the kingdom of Vale. He couldn’t even pretend to guess how the other cities were faring, although he could make them out in the distance, behind glass spheres, or at least a close approximation.

He heard the door behind him be pushed open, and Ozpin slowly turned to look at Glynda Goodwitch. She looked ragged, her once lush blonde hair disheveled and dirty. He didn’t blame her for her appearance, as the strain on resources was hard on them all.

“Glynda,” Ozpin greeted his fellow professor, “how is everything?”

“We lost another two students,” Glynda mournfully answered. “Suicide. They slit their wrists in their dorms.”

Ozpin’s frown deepened. This was the fifth incident this week alone, and that was just considering his students. For many people, Vale’s fall meant the loss of everything they had. Their homes, their families, friends and loved ones. Everyone lost something that day, things that could never be recovered.

But even if he couldn’t change the past, he could at the very least help those here in the present.

“I want the group therapy sessions to increase,” he ordered. “No one should feel alone right now.”

“Of course, Ozpin,” Glynda replied with a nod, then flipped the page on her notebook in anticipation of Ozpin’s next question.

“How’s the rest of Vale?” Ozpin finally asked.

“Most of the city is still lawless, outside of the immediate area surrounding Beacon and the agricultural district. James’ surviving forces along with capable huntsmen and huntresses do what they can, but progress towards regaining control over the city is slow. We lost track of Adam Taurus in the slums, along with the supplies he and his followers stole. Luckily, team CRDL is expected to recover from their injuries sustained in trying to fight them off, managing to arrest a handful of his followers in the process.”

Ozpin frowned at the news. Hearing about another attack or raid from Adam Taurus and his last remaining followers was, unfortunately, becoming routine to him. Although most of the White Fang had quickly defected, including a young chameleon Faunus named Ilia Amitola who led much of the initial desertions, Adam Taurus continued his crusade from the shadows. He would strike where they were most vulnerable, often to steal the supplies he either wanted or needed, before slipping away. Should he come across someone, they were usually attacked and sometimes killed.

And that was just considering the forces Beacon had. Outside of its territory, he knew that Adam and his followers inflicted similar atrocities among many of Vale’s disparate citizens, terrorizing and killing people they simply didn’t like. He wanted nothing more than to march in and put a stop to him, but so far, the guerrilla fighter was too illusive. A sustained push to find him was considered, and frequently discussed, but the issue of limited resources and manpower stayed their hand every time. It sickened him.

“Moving on,” Glynda continued, “Roman is still charging us an arm and a leg for Vale’s manufactured goods, but that’s nothing new. At the very least, he’s not pushing his luck and is content to maintain his hold over the industrial district. Operative Schnee has also confirmed that Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black are with him, along with Neo Politan. Still no sign of Cinder Fall, however.”

“I’m not surprised,” Ozpin admitted through pursed lips. “Cinder has much to offer in satiating Brainiac’s…curiosity.”

The professor merely spat out the end of his sentence, but it was still filled with venom. Could he even call it ‘curiosity’? Curiosity, although sometimes leading to recklessness and ruin, didn’t usually entail the destruction of a planet. He doubted even Salem, for how cruel she was, would have considered Remnant’s entire destruction. The thought of his long-time enemy brought his focus closer to home. He still had no idea where Salem currently was, but he did know the whereabouts of his allies, and he frowned sadly.

James Ironwood was still trying to maintain order, distributing their limited resources as efficiently as possible. Yet Ozpin could see that his friend was running almost entirely on desperation. When he thought no one was looking, the Atlesian General often sulked and drank, berating himself for failing so spectacularly. Ozpin had tried to emphasize to him repeatedly that he wasn’t at fault, but James refused to believe that.

It was even worse for Qrow and Tai. The loss of Ruby and Yang had proven too much. Qrow had doubled down on his alcoholism, reducing him to a shadow of his former self, while Tai had completely shut down. As with General Ironwood, Ozpin had been trying his hardest to help his former students, but so far nothing was working. He wondered if they would ever truly recover from their loss but hoped that they would find the strength within themselves to do so. No matter how long it took, however, he would be there for them.

At the same time, he wondered what had become of Ruby and Yang, of teams RWBY and JNPR. Were they dead, or did Brainiac capture them? Perhaps a miracle occurred and they somehow managed to escape? Ozpin doubted that was the case, but he clasped hold of that belief firmly. He hoped from the bottom of his heart that at least they survived, for if the worst came to pass, at least some of Remnant would live.

He heard a ping from within his office, and with a frown Ozpin turned to face the source. He saw a swirling red portal greeting both him and Glynda, his fellow professor moving in front of him protectively.

“Don’t bother, Glynda,” Ozpin gently ordered. “There’s no point.”

Reluctantly, Glynda lowered her wand to her side, glaring at the portal as a figure stepped through. It was a woman wearing red and black, a katana strapped to her side. Held in her hand was a mask reminiscent of a Grimm, and her red eyes bored into his own.

“Raven,” Ozpin said with as much calm as he could muster. He couldn’t help but look at the insignia Raven bore on her chest, that of an upside-down triangle made of three dots. Brainiac’s insignia. Raven patiently waited next to her portal, a look of annoyance marring her face.

“He’s summoned you,” Raven declared, and Glynda snarled. She threatened to lunge at the former bandit, but Ozpin merely raised his cane to stop her while he himself walked forward. Without sparing her a glance, Ozpin walked through the portal, Raven coming in behind him. He emerged inside a familiar metallic room, where the last remains of Raven’s tribe resided. All wore Brainiac’s insignia somewhere on their person, but Ozpin refused to give them a second look as Raven led him further along. They walked in silence, the only sounds coming from their footsteps along the metallic floor. Finally, as they neared Brainiac’s control room, Raven stopped in front of Ozpin and turned to face him.

“For your sake, and everyone else’s, just do what he says,” she advised, but Ozpin shot her a look.

“I’m surprised, Raven. Didn’t think you still cared for us,” Ozpin accused. Rather than try and deny it, Raven narrowed her eyes.

“Working for Brainiac is the only thing that kept my tribe alive. You saw firsthand how fighting him turned out for Remnant.”

“And how has becoming his servants payed off for you?” Ozpin shot back, glaring at his former student with a mixture of anger and disappointment. Raven stared back just as hard, clenching her fists.

“We survived. That’s how things turned out for us.”

“All in exchange for your precious freedom,” Ozpin reminded her. “You may call it survival, Raven, but I know what is really going on. You’re nothing more than a slave, of your own choosing.”

“And what, Ozpin, would you do in my situation?” Raven retaliated with a snarl. “In case you’ve forgotten, Brainiac destroyed Remnant in just two days.”

“I am _more_ than aware,” Ozpin said, venom filling his voice.

“Then you know we can’t beat him. He’s too powerful, and it’s pointless to try. Now come, he’s—”

“You could’ve helped them,” Ozpin stated, halting Raven in her tracks. Her back was turned to him now, and Ozpin continued. “Despite your best efforts, you have a connection to Yang. You know she went to face him with her team and friends. You could have gone to her, helped them face Brainiac.”

“And look where that defiance got her,” Raven quietly replied, looking down at her feet. “Yang is dead. So is Ruby.”

“You don’t know that for certain,” Ozpin reminded her, trying to reach out to her. “All it would take is a single portal to her, wherever she might be.”

Raven remained silent. For a moment, Ozpin allowed himself to believe he might have gotten through to her, but Raven merely put on her mask and turned to face him.

“There’s no point,” she emphatically stated while opening the door. Ozpin sighed, disappointment filling him as Raven beckoned him to proceed. The door closed behind him, leaving Ozpin alone with the being who destroyed everything he knew. He glared at the back of Brainiac’s head, twiddling his fingers across his cane. Ozpin wondered if he could perhaps get the jump on him, thrust his cane through the back of Brainiac’s head and out his eye, but knew he wouldn’t get five feet before he would die.

“Planet F1934G’s preservation complete,” Brainiac announced as he finished his dreadful work on the planet below. A moment later, he pressed a button and fired the planet-destroying laser, fracturing its core and turning the planet into a fireball. Ozpin, with silent horror, wondered how many souls just lost their lives to the monster before him, but forced his tongue to be silent. Slowly, Brainiac turned to face Ozpin, the cables disconnecting from his body with a shrill hiss of air. Once freed, Brainiac stepped forward, his heavy footsteps echoing across the room, but Ozpin stared straight into Brainiac’s cold, machine-like eyes. Although they shone a brilliant purple, Ozpin only saw one thing in those eyes.

The lack of a soul. Or, at the least, one that was buried under a mountain of cold, hard logic and a complete lack of empathy.

“Ozpin,” Brainiac said.

“Brainiac,” Ozpin greeted. “You summoned me.”

“I did,” Brainiac confirmed. “I have more questions of you, and you will answer them.”

“I see,” Ozpin said, furrowing his brow. This wasn’t the first time Brainiac had summoned Ozpin, and deep down he knew it wouldn’t be the last. Through his study of Remnant, Brainiac would come across a new, untold secret, then have Raven bring Ozpin to him to answer it. In an act of mercy, Raven had apparently convinced the alien warlord that killing Ozpin would be pointless, given how he would simply reincarnate into another body after an indeterminate amount of time. That would lead to an extensive search, which would be a waste of resources. Brainiac was nothing but logical, and so had deigned to keep Ozpin alive.

That didn’t mean, however, that Ozpin’s attempts at defiance went unanswered, or without punishment. Sometimes it was dealt to him, other times he wasn’t so lucky and was forced to watch another take his punishment instead. In the end, Brainiac always got what he wanted, but still Ozpin had to resist somehow. He owed it to himself and the people of Remnant to at least try. As the two beings stared at each other, Ozpin felt an idea take root in his head, and he nodded.

“Alright,” Ozpin finally spoke. “I’ll answer your questions.”

“You’re being more cooperative this time,” Brainiac immediately noted. “Why?”

Ozpin nodded. He had expected Brainiac to see through him, but still he kept going with his, admittedly, half-baked plan.

“Yes, I am being more cooperative today. Call it recognizing the inevitable, if you will.”

“Hmm, indeed,” Brainiac replied, coldly walking to his monitor. “Now, my question is—”

“I wasn’t done,” Ozpin interrupted, halting Brainiac in his tracks. Slowly, the Coluan turned to face Ozpin, narrowing his eyes at the Remnantian professor. Seizing his moment, Ozpin bravely walked towards his captor.

“As I was saying, I am willing and able to cooperate with you, to answer your many questions. However, in return for my cooperation, I only ask for something in return.”

“And that would be?” Brainiac asked, slightly curious at Ozpin’s audacity.

“A simple game,” Ozpin answered, causing Brainiac to raise his eyebrow. “Tell me, are you familiar with the game of chess?”

“I am familiar,” Brainiac admitted. “A game played by two people on a checkered board, where specialized pieces are manipulated to capture the other player’s king. Similar games exist across multiple planets.”

“Then I won’t bother delving into the specifics,” Ozpin stated. “In return for my complete cooperation, I ask to play games of chess with you. At the start of each game, we each ask each other a question, and we both answer truthfully. Whoever wins the game asks another, and the loser must answer in turn.”

Brainiac regarded Ozpin’s words. “Why should I allow this and not force the information out of you?”

“Because it would be a waste of resources,” Ozpin replied. “A cooperative prisoner of their own free will is always better than one forced to act under duress. The answers and behaviors given are more genuine, less likely to be falsified.”

“Hmm.” Brainiac hummed, thinking over Ozpin’s offer. He knew that, should he push it, Ozpin stood no chance of standing up to Brainiac. Yet his logic made sense, even if he felt that the sudden change of heart was somewhat dubious. Slowly, he came around to it, and ultimately nodded in agreement, figuring that should Ozpin attempt something, he’d be able to rectify the situation easily.

“I accept your terms,” Brainiac declared, to which Ozpin nodded. Brainiac pressed a few holographic buttons on his control panel, and soon a holographic table and board appeared in between them. It solidified, forming their play space. Ozpin politely sat down, leaning his cane against his chair, while Brainiac did the same.

“Ask your question, as a show of goodwill,” Brainiac ordered, and Ozpin nodded. He already had a question in mind.

“Before you destroyed Remnant and killed my people, eight of my students were pulled aboard your ship,” Ozpin said. “What happened to them?”

Brainiac thought over Ozpin’s question, then stared at him. “The children attempted a rescue of their youngest, and upon reuniting discovered my preservation and laboratory. They then fought their way to me to stop Vale’s preservation, an attempt at which they were unsuccessful. After I destroyed the planet, I moved to transfer them to my lab for study, only to discover that I had missed them grabbing an artifact from my vault: a Mother Box recovered in Remnant’s Land of Darkness. A Boom Tube was opened, transporting them off my ship and causing considerable damage in the process before closing. I do not know where they landed.”

Ozpin’s mind reeled from the answer. Teams RWBY and JNPR were alive? Not only that, they had managed to _escape_? For the first time in months, Ozpin allowed himself to smile. Joy coursed through him, a sensation he had almost forgotten. Still, he had to compose himself, and became stoic once more.

“You have the white pieces,” Ozpin indicated. Brainiac didn’t respond, instead moving his first piece. The duo descended into a silence as they carefully manipulated the pieces on the board. When Brainiac quickly won the game, Ozpin wasn’t surprised in the slightest and straightened himself, waiting for Brainiac’s question.

“My question for you, Ozpin, is this: When I recovered the Mother Box, I had to fight a powerful Grimm/Human-hybrid to retrieve it. One who could not die and proved impossible to capture. When I recovered the Mother Box, my forces were forced to retreat, and subsequently the planet was destroyed.”

“It sounds to me that you killed this creature,” Ozpin stated, a pit forming in his stomach.

“Admittedly, I thought so as well. At the time, I was…disappointed, but had decided I could move past the lost opportunity. But, this morning, I found the headmaster of Haven Academy dead in his office, partially eaten by a Seer Grimm. There were no signs of forced entry, and the creature had come from a secret room connected to his office. The room was meant to house it, and the Seer promptly killed itself upon my attempts to capture it for study. I then spoke with Raven Branwen, who directed me to you.”

Once again, Ozpin’s mind was reeling. Leo was dead? Not only that, but he had a Seer in his office? Slowly, the professor felt a profound sense of anger, betrayal, and above all else, disappointment course through him. How many did Leo make? As with his many reincarnations, he had unfortunately lost count long ago.

“I…see,” Ozpin finally got out, feeling regret over his friend’s death. Finally, he looked back up at Brainiac with a steely expression and nodded. “What is your question?”

Brainiac coldly regarded him for a moment, then leaned forward.

“Who is Salem?”

[~][~]


	25. Elseworlds: 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stories from another time and place.
> 
> Oz speaks to an old friend, while in another universe, Ruby and Superman have a heartbreaking reunion.

** Hunters of Justice: Elseworlds **

**A Rendezvous with Death** by trestwho

[~][~]

Darkness. Everything around him was a pitch black. There were no sounds, no sources of light. Simply nothing. For as far as the eye can see, the man was alone. For the first time in decades, he was alone. The thought saddened him, for he knew what this scene meant.

He was dead. Again. How long had it been since he had died last? Since the ‘gift’ the Brother of Light had bestowed upon him been used? Before, he at least had his previous life to communicate with, but even he disappeared after a time. Lost in his thoughts, the man began to wander with surprisingly confident steps. It wasn’t surprising to him, after all he had been here so many times before. Every time he had died, he found his way here.

Found his way to her.

“Hey, you again! So, how many times does that make?” he heard a voice call out to him. With a wistful smile on his face, the man turned around to see a young woman looking back at him with a happy expression on her face. Her skin was a corpse pale with raven black hair reaching to her lower back. She wore a silver ankh around her neck over a black sleeveless dress, a studded belt looped around her black pants. Under her right eye was a small tattoo of a swirling eye. He never quite knew where she got that design from, but he had to admit it suited her.

“I’m afraid I lost count long ago, Lady Death,” the man greeted, but Death of the Endless merely scoffed and waved him off.

“Oz, Oz, we’ve been over this. Call me Death, please,” Death insisted, and Oz nodded. He remembered this ritual of theirs. They always did it when he finally died and met with her again, and at this point it was custom.

“Come, come! My house is this way!” Death insisted as she took him by the hand and led him along the black void. Oz, throughout his many lifetimes, always felt that the sensation of her touch was quite peculiar. So cold, yet so filled with life at the same time. How else could he describe her but the same?

As they walked further, a lone object entered Oz’ view. It was a small, one story house. In contrast to her gothic outfit, Death’s abode was a bright yellow. Flowers lied in pots along the front porch, a small garden along its side. The house, especially when compared to the rest of the endless void, was a beacon of life, and Oz couldn’t help but smile as the memories of the times he spent here in-between lives came to mind.

“Ahhh, home sweet home. Make yourself comfortable, Oz.” Death sighed in relief as she entered the room and ushered Oz inside. He would have taken off his shoes, but he found that there were none to take off to begin with. Death pointed him to a comfy chair, and with a polite nod Oz sat down upon it. He felt his body sink into the leather, and a sense of relief flooded through him.

“Once again, Death, thank you for letting me stay here until…” Oz began, but Death waved him off.

“It’s fine. Besides, I like the company. Usually, the only one who comes and visit is Dream.”

“I don’t believe I’ve met him yet.”

“He’s met you,” Death revealed as she fed her pet goldfish, and Oz nodded. He wasn’t surprised that Dream of the Endless had met him at some point in his many lives. After all, Dream was the literal function of Dream.

“Can’t say I’m surprised,” Oz admitted and leaned back further into his chair. His mind reached back to his previous life. It was a good one. He had accomplished much, made friends and loved ones, all while bringing the four kingdoms of Remnant closer than ever before. Still, the very fact that he was here yet again, and his former wife was not, made him frown slightly.

“You’re thinking about her again,” Death pointed out, sitting across from him on a large couch. Oz looked back at Death, then slowly nodded.

“I’m sorry, but… I can’t help it.” Oz sighed and looked down, rubbing his hands together. “The gods of my world gave me a mission, and that mission has directly put me in conflict with her. I can’t beat her, yet for the sake of everyone else I must continue to pretend that we can. Many…good people have paid the price for my mistakes.”

Death nodded solemnly. “Yes, that is true. When the time finally comes that you die and stay dead, you will be held accountable for those mistakes.”

Oz slumped further at this news, only for Death to smile, stand up, and walk over to him. She placed a hand comfortingly on his shoulder and sat down next to him.

“Just as you will be held accountable for all the good you’ve done. You’re not a bad man, Oz. Just one whose made many, many, _many_ lifetimes worth of mistakes. I take everything into account when I guide people into the afterlife, and you are no exception.”

Oz smiled at this statement, and perked up. He looked at her, and Death smiled back.

“Still,” Death leaned back, crossing her hands behind her head and using the couch’s armrest as a pillow, “you are a very interesting person, Oz. After all, I usually only meet a person twice. First when they enter the world, again when they leave it. It’s not often that I meet a person multiple times, especially over many different centuries and millennia.”

“Oh, there are others?” Oz asked, and Death nodded.

“Yes, there are. You’d be surprised how many times people die then come back to life. It’s always interesting when they do, even if it’s, admittedly, a little annoying.”

“Annoying? Death of the Endless gets annoyed?” Oz couldn’t help but chuckle at this, and Death puffed out her cheeks.

“Yes, actually. Especially when it happens over and over again. I take them to the afterlife, take them back out, do it all over again, yada yada yada. Sometimes it feels like someone just doesn’t want the world to change.”

Death rolled her wrist to emphasize her point, and Oz smiled. It always amused him to see just how lively Death was. Many felt, including him before he finally met her all those eons ago, that Death was cold, heartless, coming in uninvited and tearing loved ones apart. Yet Death of the Endless was anything but cold and heartless. She was aloof, yes, but at the same time compassionate, heartfelt, and lively.

“Are you annoyed at me?” Oz asked, and Death, taken off-guard, shook her hands wildly.

“No, nononono!” she insisted. “What’s happening with you is not your fault! Why would I be annoyed with you?”

“Because I keep failing in my task and winding up here?” Oz offered, to which Death gave him a look.

“… Oz? How many times have we been over this? Salem refusing to understand the true meaning of life and death is not your fault. It is purely hers.”

Oz didn’t answer, and Death looked at him with understanding. “You still love her, don’t you?”

For a moment, there was only silence. An answer didn’t immediately spring to mind, but Death was patient. She let him ruminate in his thoughts, until finally an answer came.

“No, at least not who she is now,” he admitted. “But neither do I hate her. If anything… I pity her. She can never truly know peace.”

Death nodded. “It’s a shame, really. So much power, yet none of it is enough to really give her what she truly wants.”

“Hmhmm,” Oz nodded in agreement. Although to be honest, he wasn’t sure _what_ Salem really wanted anymore. Leaning back against his chair, he and Death continued to converse for quite some time. They talked about a myriad array of subjects, ranging from the banal to the philosophical. She even took the time to show off the latest additions to her sunhat collection.

Oz smiled warmly through it all. Even after coming to Death’s home countless times, he never could quite grasp the passage of time here. For all he knew, Oz could have spent anywhere between a few minutes to hours to even years. Eventually, however, his time with Death ended the same. His body began to glow and particles floated off of him.

“Ah, leaving already?” Death asked as Oz’s body slowly faded away.

“Indeed,” Oz said, closing his eyes. “Once again, Death, I enjoy these conversations with you.”

“Likewise, Oz,” Death replied with a smile, folding her hands together. “Hopefully, the next time I see you will be the last.”

Oz laughed lightly. “You always say that.”

“And I always will.”

With that final comment, Oz faded away, leaving Death of the Endless alone once again. Yet she wasn’t sad at his departure. Instead, she was happy for him. The gift of life was one not to be wasted, and Oz, after all of his incarnations, had learned to not squander it. More than anyone else, he understood what it meant to be alive, which is why they were such good friends.

“May you have an interesting life, Oz.”

[~][~]

 **RWBY: Kingdom Come** by The Infamous Man

Time and space shifted again. Hours passed by in the blink of an eye for Norman McKay.

“Where are we now?” The question came from his lips on reflex even as he took stock in his surroundings. They were in a military bunker of some sort with weapons racks on the walls. Men and women were on computers typing away while a group surrounding a table with various notes and maps of different countries strewn about. However, while some were human others were obviously metahumans of a sort. The ears and even tails of various animals, scales around the eyes or cheeks to show they weren’t like Norman.

Behind them, facing a row of nine television screens, three by three as if they were a grid, was a young woman dressed in military gear with a white mask with near demonic cat-like features that were a dark blue. On the screens were various news reports, some of Kansas and some of reports on revolutions across the globe. Hanging overhead was a blue flag with the image of a white wolf in the center of a circle.

 ** _“We are at the White Fang headquarters in Puerto Rico, Norman McKay.”_** His otherworldly guide, the Spectre, intoned as floated beside the pastor.  ** _“And we are here to see the fate of another lost souls, thrust onto this world by a cruel twist of fate.”_**

“White Fang...” Norman repeated the words, tasted them, before he recognized them. “Yes! The terrorist group! They were on the news several times, aiding in various revolutions across the world.” Norman got a closer look at the woman and recognized her. “By God...”

He vaguely remembered her as being part of the same group Ruby Rose and her sister were in. The pale skin and cat-like eyes, the flowing black hair that was now cropped short, and the cat ears that rested on the top of her head.

However, she sported a new addition to her features.

Running down the left side of her face from the top of her eyebrow to the corner of her lip was a deep scar. Her left eye was now a murky grey, utterly useless now.

 ** _“Indeed. Behold Blake Belladonna, the leader of the White Fang.”_** Norman could now hear the sound of shouting and gunfire from beyond.  ** _“And now, we bear witness to a reunion of sorts.”_**

The bolted door to the room was then ripped open by the hinges, revealing Superman and Ruby Rose. The men and women the room drew their guns, aiming it at the two.

“Cease fire!” Blake ordered. “Put down your guns. There’s no need for them.”

“But Blake!” One protested, a woman with brown skin and red hair as well as dark brown scales.

“That’s a direct order from your commander, Colonel Ilia!” Blake barked out. The men under her command tensed but lowered their weapons. “Now leave us. They just want to talk to me.”

Uneasily, the people of the room slowly shuffled out. Neither Superman nor Ruby made any motion to stop them. Ilia went beside Blake and whispered, “Are you sure about this?”

“I’ll be fine.” Blake said, not even bothering to lower her voice. “Now go.”

Nodding reluctantly, Ilia left the room but not before shooting Ruby and Superman a glare.

Once alone, Blake turned around and faced them. “So... what do I owe the Justice League for this visit? Honestly, I thought you would have come sooner.”  
  
“Blake...” Ruby bit her lip before continuing. “Blake... it has been a long time, hasn’t it?”

“Over ten years, from my count.”

“You’ve done a lot for yourself.” Superman said softly, but firmly as he looked around. “I remember you mentioning about the White Fang years ago, but from what I recall you wanted to cut all ties with them after they became radical with their methods.”

“A lot of White Fang members ended up being abducted by Brainiac, including their leader Adam.” Blake walked over to a small cabinet and opened it, taking out a bottle of bourbon and three glasses. “He tried to resume his hunt for me, using his men and pretty much ignoring the position he was in. After you left, he finally caught up with me.” She poured the alcohol into the three glasses. “I got out. He didn’t.” She set down the bottle and traced her scar. “The White Fang members, the ones still alive, needed a leader. Someone to direct them with Adam gone. Otherwise they would’ve become just as bad as the so-called ‘Heroes’. If anyone was going to guide them, I decided it had to be me.”

She picked up two glasses and walked over to Superman and Ruby. “I don’t drink.” Superman politely refused.

“Me neither.” With Ruby’s refusal, Blake shrugged and downed the glass meant for Superman. “But Blake... what you’ve been doing with the White Fang... I mean, you’re giving people weapons! You’re aiding them in their wars and...”

“You know, I used to think the Faunus on Remnant had it bad.” Blake let out a bitter chuckle. “But with what I’ve seen done to people just because their skin, their  _skin_ , was different, or people who demanded that they be treated as equals and given basic rights... I don’t arm terrorists, Ruby. I arm people who have the will to fight against governments that would shoot them in the head just for having a different opinion. Nonviolence can only get you so far...” With that, she finished the second glass of alcohol.

“That’s not how we do things, Blake.” Superman spoke up, glaring at Blake. “I thought we taught you that when you joined the League.”

Blake’s face twisted in anger. “And look how far that has gotten you and the world! How many people had to die in countries that didn’t have enough luck to have superheroes who were willing to fight governments that trampled on them!? How much blood had to be spilt just so you wouldn’t go ‘over the line’?!” Blake stormed off to the table and slammed the glasses on them. “And don’t you dare treat me like the new breed! The White Fang is fighting side-by-side with revolutionaries against that fascist monster, Von Bach! I even make sure to fund non-violent groups in countries that won’t hurt them, because not all change needs a gun to make it happen!”

“Blake, please just listen!” Ruby shouted, causing Blake to stop her angry declarations. “I know... I know you’re trying to help. I know you are hurting... but we can make things better! We can fight together again, and make the world a better place as friends!” Ruby looked to Superman, who nodded. “We... we’re also willing to make sure you and your men get a full pardon. If you... if you join the Justice League, and disband the White Fang...”

Blake let out a short, hollow laugh. “It’s not going to happen, Ruby. I’ve built up too much to just quit and play Huntress again.”

“Blake, please! This is a second chance!” Ruby pleaded to her old friend. “If you don’t take it, sooner or later you will become just like Ad-!”

Ruby was interrupted when a hand faster than a speeding bullet caught something in front of her face. It was an empty glass, its contents spilled on its trip to hit her.

Superman closed his eyes as he lowered his arm. Ruby looked in shock at Blake, who had her arm outstretched and her face red with anger. “Get out...” She growled.

“Blake... I...”

“I SAID GET OUT!”

Tears fell down Ruby’s cheeks and Superman put a hand on her shoulder. Without another word, the two of them left the leader of the White Fang alone in the room.

“What happened between them, Spectre?” Norman asked quietly to the agent of God. “They were friends, were they not?”

 ** _“In a way, they still are. But the passage of time has changed many things.”_** Spectre motioned to Blake, who shakily walked to a chair and collapsed on it. She stared at them, no  _through_ them, with hollow eyes.  ** _“Blake Belladonna had always felt like an outsider, turned away by society due to her species. She found friends and comrades that accepted her, but then they were cruelly torn away from their home. Once here, she was an outsider twice over. The new friends and comrades she built were slowly eroded by Superman’s retreat from the world. She could only see the injustices of the world and chose the only avenue she knew how to correct it.”_**

At that moment, Blake Belladonna put her face into her hands and began to weep.

**_“And, in many ways, she became the very thing she once fought against.”_ **

Norman turned away from the Faunus, this once optimistic defender of justice who adopted this world as her own. “Take me away from this place, Spectre. I’ve seen enough here...”

**_“As you wish.”_ **

And thus, they walked on to another place to bear witness.

[~][~]


	26. Hunters of Justice Chibi: Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More Chibi adventures! RWBYJNPR foils a dastardly Joker plot, Ruby gets inducted into a special club, and we reveal how Hunters of Justice Part One really should have ended.

_*Happy, up-tuned, jingly version of Justice League theme*_  
  
Hunters of Justice Chibi!

* * *

**_Clowning Around_ **

* * *

Clowns were everywhere. Some were doing tricks, some were putting on acts, and some were just moving around to various areas and amenities – not uncommonly, via unicycle. There were clown cakes, clown cookies, hot dogs of a clownish size. Interspersed among the clowns were several everyday people enjoying the antics, getting their faces painted by clown artists, and there were even a couple of mimes. The teams of alien teenagers were actually in awe of this odd spectacle for different reasons.

“Man! I never knew there were so many clowns!” Jaune exclaimed as Pyrrha put on some finishing touches to his makeup.

“I know right!” Ruby answered with a wide smile that matched her own makeup. “And there’s a whole week to celebrate them.”

“Oh, there you are,” a voice called out as a clown man came over to them. “You’re the young supers helping with security, right?”

“Thaaaat’s us!” Nora said as she popped up in a pink tutu, dragging Ren along, who was recently face-painted and wearing a more poufy, exaggerated form of his green martial arts coat.

“While I’m always happy to see young folks get in the spirit, you know you didn’t have to dress up,” the clown president pointed out. Weiss, looking almost like a rosy-cheeked porcelain doll in a frilly baby blue dress, glared at Ruby, who just offered her an awkward smile and a shrug.

“Yeah, but it was too tempting not to,” the pink Huntress explained. “Me and Re- er, Lotus had a backup plan that if being superheroes didn’t pan out, we’d join a circus. Ooh, what’s that behind your ear?” she suddenly called out before reaching behind the clown’s ear and pulling out a coin. “It’s a nickel!”

“A classic,” he said before taking out a white handkerchief and unfurling it with a flick. “Though you should remember to clean behind your own.” He made to wipe behind Nora’s, then pulled it away, only for it to have colorful cloths tied to it and each other, end to end, be pulled from her ear. Nora’s face turned into an ‘O’ and she began excitedly waving her arms around as he seemed to pull an impossible length of handkerchiefs out of nowhere.

“Hey, where are the other two?” Pyrrha asked as she released Jaune, who was now staring at the trick in awe.

“Just a sec,” Yang called ahead. She was dressed in over-sized shorts with suspenders and had the classic red nose, along with cartoonish boxing mitts. Blake, following behind her, had cat whiskers painted on her face as well as a bow tied and colored to look like cat ears. “Took a minute to get that bow on. You have to do it exactly right or it looks completely wrong.”

“I’m never letting you pick out my costume for anything ever again.”

“Well, if that’s everyone, let me show you all what you’re guarding.”

* * *

 

The clown president brought them into the Clown Gallery-Museum and showed them to a set of rooms where shelves were lined with small, painted eggs, each one bearing a unique clown face upon them.

“The Clown Egg Register!” he announced with a dramatic flourish. “Some of the greatest clowns in history have had their makeup immortalized in this hall. It’s an unwritten rule that no two clown faces can be alike. To make sure no one was copying, clowns started putting their faces on hen’s eggs to keep up with their own styles. Now it’s a tradition.”

“Whoa! Do you have every clown face on Earth in here?” Jaune asked.

“Well, not every face. You have to be submitted and pass. Some clowns don’t send in for their eggs. Others don’t make the cut. In fact, you’re here for that.” He turned towards them, then rolled one of his arms like an actual crank as his face shifted from jovial to serious. “Years ago, the Joker tried to submit an egg.”

“Wait,  _the_  Joker?” Yang asked him to clarify. “Guy who terrorizes Gotham City in the weirdest, wackiest ways, Joker.”

“The evil villain, yes. Well, like I said, years ago he submitted for an egg in the Register. Obviously, it was rejected.”

“I guess there are rules against being an evil villain with a long list of crimes of all types,” Pyrrha stated.

“Not only that, but he’s not really a clown.” The teens were a little stumped by that, but the president continued on. “Ever since that day, he’s tried every year, during International Clown Week no less, to break in and either steal all the eggs or put his own in. Sometimes at the Trinity Church, sometimes here in Wookey Hole. But in the last few he’s tried hitting both.”

“Oh, so that’s why Batman and the others are watching out over in Dalston,” Ruby figured.

“The Joker doesn’t just try to bomb it?” Weiss asked with a shrug. “He’s certainly not above that.”

“I hate to try and get in the mind of a psycho like that, but I think he sees it as a game,” the president sadly admitted. “Though I suppose we’re a bit fortunate there. Well, let’s hope this year goes as well as last year.”

* * *

 

Things were pretty quiet – as quiet as one of the world’s biggest clown festivals could be – for the first few hours, with RWBY and JNPR changing and mixing up shifts to guard the museum and join the festivities. Nora soon found her new upper limit for cotton candy. Yang was banned from the strength testing games. Weiss was actually getting into the spirit of things. And usually when they were all posted the tourists figured it to be a part of their act. They even posed for pictures around a dozen times each.

“I don’t know what “Five Nights at Freddy’s” is, but I’m going to figure it out,” Weiss declared as they readied for another shift change.

“Huh, what happened?” Jaune asked them.

“A lot of people were pointing out that Weiss looks just like a character called Baby Doll from a video game,” Ruby explained. “Sounds kinda adorable. I mean, a game about a pizza place with characters like that? Don’t know why they were so insistent we try it when we mentioned we’d never heard of it. Wouldn’t let their friends give us any spoilers either.”

"Yeah, that does sound interesting. Maybe I should-"

Suddenly, several cars veered in, narrowly missing people who scattered to get out of their paths. Several clowns with gangster getups (or was it the other way around?) then jumped out and started pulling out guns before opening fire on the teams, who ducked for cover as actual bullets either missed them or painfully bounced off of their Auras.

“Okay, who invited them?!” Yang yelled.

“It’s the Joker’s goons!” Ruby answered before pulling out Crescent Rose. “I’ll give you covering fire! Go!”

She then popped over her cover and took three shots, hitting three bad guys in the foreheads and causing them to fall backward unconscious. Yang and Blake were the first up and over, Yang speeding along the ground and Blake throwing out her Gambol Shroud and then yanking herself forward with the ribbon. Blake kicked two goons while at the same time tying a few more together with a long strand of multi-colored handkerchiefs that she seemingly pulled out of nowhere. Yang, meanwhile, bodied one then started punching out others, forgetting for a moment about her boxing gloves, which made squeaks with every blow. She found it humorous, more than anything else.

Some bad guys tried to flank, but Jaune threw a large pie into the lead bad guy's face, making him stumble and, causing a gangster clown pileup that Nora jumped beside with her hammer ready.

“Fore!” she yelled before swinging, smacking them all through the air with a loud squeak. Pyrrha then used her Semblance to move one of their cars around, catching each bad guy inside of it as they fell. The few who hadn't been sent flying by Nora were trying to fend off Ren's balloon-animal attacks or were juggled by Weiss. When they were done, they threw their opponents towards Pyrrha, who immediately caught them with the clown cars. After the last of them were captured, she bent each of the doors so that they were stuck shut, trapping the evil clowns within. Several people started clapping, apparently thinking the whole thing had been a show.

“Looks like no one got hurt,” Ren announced as he came up.

“And the Joker himself wasn’t here,” Jaune realized before snapping his fingers. “Let’s call up Bats.”

* * *

 

Dick received a call on his phone and answered it when he saw that it was Red Reaper. “Nightwing here.”

“Hey, we just beat up some of Joker’s goons. Everything okay at Clown Church?”

Dick looked over to where Batman was currently ‘apprehending’ the Joker.

“Go to sleep. Go to sleep. Go to sleep. Go to sleep,” the Batman said as he rapidly punched the Joker’s face, said clown somehow still conscious and laughing after around half a minute of that. Even Harley Quinn went out like a light after a few socks and a chokehold.

“Yeah, we’ve got it covered.”

[~][~]

**_Super-Club_ **

* * *

 

“Um, Superman?” Ruby asked as Superman walked Ruby down a long corridor.

“Yes, Ruby?” Superman replied as they continued to walk. “What’s on your mind?”

“It’s just, well…” Ruby fumbled for her words as she glanced from side to side, “Not that I don’t like hanging out with you and all, but…where are we going? And how come the others couldn’t come?”

Superman chuckled and patted Ruby’s head. “As to why the others couldn’t come, they weren’t invited. As to where we’re going, just wait and see. Trust me, you’ll like it.”

Ruby nodded and accepted Superman’s answer. They continued to walk down the corridor, their footsteps lightly echoing across its metallic walls. Along the side were a series of doors, and Ruby wondered if they would enter one. With each passed door, however, her confusion only grew.

Frankly, she was getting kind of bored. Eventually, however, the pair stopped in front of one, which Superman opened and gestured Ruby inside.

“After you,” he said courteously. Ruby smiled then, with the utmost confidence she could muster, she walked inside to a collection of superheroes talking among themselves. Many she recognized, including Starfire, Miss Martian, and Martian Manhunter, yet there were others she didn’t know. Slightly confused, she saw Starfire excitedly wave her over to join her and Miss Martian, and so Ruby went to join them. She thought of perhaps striking a small conversation, if only to discover just what was going on, but the sight of Superman walking up to a podium preemptively silenced her. The Man of Steel cleared his throat, causing the assembled heroes to focus their attention on him.

“Hello, everyone,” Superman started. “I have a very special announcement today. Ruby, if you would come over here, please?”

Ruby, slightly surprised, felt everyone’s eyes close in on her. Taking a deep gulp, she stood up and hurried over to Superman, who gently led her to the podium. She looked out across the heroes, wondering what she was supposed to say. After a few seconds of silence, she decided to be like Yang and went with her gut.

“Um, hi,” Ruby greeted her apparent audience with a wave. The heroes kindly waved back, and Ruby felt her spirits rise just a little. “My name is Ruby Rose. You’ve probably seen me around here before.”

“Hello, Ruby,” all the heroes, even the ones she knew, responded. Superman then stepped forward and gestured towards her.

“Recently, Ruby here discovered a new power of hers. Like the rest of us, this power came from her eyes.”

“Hmm,” the heroes hummed.

“What power is this, exactly?” a hero she didn’t recognize asked. Rather than answering himself, Superman turned towards Ruby, who was finally beginning to understand what this was about.

“Oh, um… I can fire a wave of light from my eyes that can kill Grimm.” Ruby paused, then quickly added, “And apparently demons, too, but we don’t know if that’s my limit.”

“Intriguing,” Martian Manhunter mused while sneaking a Choco into his mouth.

“My thoughts exactly,” Superman replied. “So, as club president, I motion to induct Ruby Rose as the newest member of the Superhero Eye-Powers Club.”

“I second the motion,” Miss Martian declared instantly, followed by a chorus of ‘ayes’. Ruby, slightly confused, turned to face Superman.

“The ‘Superhero Eye-Powers Club?’” she asked.

“Yes, the Superhero Eye-Powers Club,” he replied. “Over the years, as Earth’s superhero community expanded, we found that although each hero was unique in his or her own way, commonalities existed between them. For example, eye powers.”

“Oh, like your heat vision! And x-ray vision…and telescopic vision…and microvision, and – Just how many powers do you have, again?”

“I’ll give you and your team a list one day,” Superman said then pointed to the rest of the assembled heroes. “You see, Ruby, each superhero in the Superhero Eye-Powers Club has, in some form or fashion, powers related to their eyes. Some, like Aquaman—”

“Yo!” a bearded man wearing scaled gold armor with green gauntlets waved out, prompting Ruby to smile and wave back. He seemed nice, if a little boisterous.

“are relatively simple. His eyes are adapted to see underwater, which enables him to see in the dark extremely well. Others are more exotic, like my own or Martian Manhunter’s Martian Vision.”

“Speaking of which, what’s the difference between that and your heat vision?” Ruby asked.

“Oh, that’s simple. It’s…uh…” Superman struggled for an answer, prompting Miss Martian to sigh. Ruby giggled at Superman’s face, causing the Man of Steel to slightly blush and rub the back of his head.

“Anyway,” he stated, his voice flush with embarrassment, “since you’ve unlocked the power of your Silver-Eyes, I felt that you belonged here. What do you say, you in?”

Ruby thought it over for a second, then nodded. “Sure!”

“Most exceptional!” Starfire exclaimed. “You will have a joyous time here!”

“Thank you! I must admit, never been part of a club before. I’m a little bit excited,” Ruby admitted, then paused and rubbed her chin. “Come to think of it, you said that a lot of heroes shared traits, right?”

“Correct,” Superman nodded.

“Then how many other clubs are there?”

* * *

 

_Extreme Durability Club_

“Yeah, so although I’m not the strongest person on my team,” Jaune continued to an assembled group of heroes, “I can tank a hit like no one else. If I need to take a blow meant for one of my friends, I’ll gladly do it.”

“Your dedication and loyalty is commendable,” Wonder Woman gently told the young teen while placing her hand on his shoulder, “but you must be careful regardless of how durable you are. You won’t be much help if you’re too injured to fight.”

“And remember to value yourself as well,” Captain Atom emphasized. “Even if you can take a hit, it’s often just as useful to dodge it.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you.”

* * *

 

_Electricity Powers Club_

“So, if you think about it, I’m basically a living battery!” Nora proclaimed.

“Electricity-boosted strength, eh?” Static Shock mused while rubbing his chin, then smirked and held up a sparking hand. “Wanna see if your Semblance works on our powers?”

“YES!!”

* * *

 

_Terrible Parents Club_

“My father, Jacques Schnee, was a cruel, selfish man who wanted nothing more than for me to be his puppet and continue his twisted legacy. Sad thing is, he’s not even a Schnee and yet he’s managed to completely supplant my grandfather’s legacy.”

“My father is a demon who tried to, and did, possess me in order to destroy the world.”

“My mother drugged my father and slept with him, which is how I was conceived. And she’s a terrorist who tried to kill me when I chose my father over her.”

“Yeah,” Orion cut in, “my father’s Darkseid.”

“… Oh, you poor thing.”

* * *

 

_Dead Parent’s Club_

“My mother was crushed by our house before my very eyes after telling me everything would be okay, and my father sacrificed himself to buy me time to run and hide. All because of a single Grimm,” Ren solemnly admitted while Batman and Nightwing, among others, nodded stoically. “It all happened so fast.”

“A child losing their parents at a young age is always…difficult,” Batman replied. “But know this, Ren. You honor them with your actions.”

“As do you, Batman.”

* * *

 

_Extraterrestrial Club_

“Oh, hey guys!” Ruby greeted the rest of her team and team JNPR, then looked around to the massive group of heroes around them. “Wow… Sure are a lot of heroes in here.”

“Just how many aliens protect the Earth?” Jaune wondered.

“Apparently just as many as were born here.”

[~][~]

**_How “Hunters of Justice: Part One” Should Have Ended_ **

* * *

 

Brainiac stared over the planet below, manipulating his fleet of capture vessels with machine-like efficiency.

“People of Remnant,” he began. “I…am Brainiac. Do not be alarmed, for I offer salvation. Your people, your cultures, your knowledge will be preserved for eternity, spared from the ravages of time. Do not resist.”

As Brainiac prepared the first capture, he considered a show of force. “The weakest capital of Shade has no defenses to consider, making it an easy target. Capturing it and showing it to the world would surely bring them under heel, making my preservation all the easier.”

“Hey, here’s a bright idea,” a human man with glasses and a lab coat said as he came in from the side with his finger raised. “How about instead of capturing _one_ city, which will just make the rest of them fight against you as hard as they can, leading to a dramatic waste of time and lives, why don’t you just bottle all of the cities at the same time?”

Brainiac blinked at the surprisingly reasonable and helpful man, before nodding and quickly orienting his ships above each city he intended to capture. A moment later, preservation beams engulfed each one, storing them in bottles for the archives.

“Hmm… That was easy. Don’t know why I don’t always do this.”

* * *

 

**FFWD >>**

* * *

 

“What are these things?!” a soldier shouted as he fired his rifle at the black mass of monsters before him. Superman hovered overhead, firing his heat vision at any that came too close. The horde was massive, quickly covering the entire street with fangs and claws. He furrowed his brow and clenched his fists, freezing another with his freeze breath and shattering it with a single punch.

“There’s too many of them!” another soldier shouted fearfully as a wolf-like creature lunged towards her. Before contact could be made, however, Superman burst in between them with inhuman speed, catching the wolf’s paw effortlessly. The wolf snarled and tried to wrest its arm free while swiping with the other, but Superman merely tore off the arm and shot his heat vision through its head.

‘ _This is taking too long_ ,’ he thought as he took in the situation. He wondered how he was going to contain this, then a thought sprang to mind.

‘ _Oh right, superspeed,_ ’ he remembered. Superman then disappeared in a red-and-blue blur. The soldiers watched dumbfoundedly as Superman abused his superspeed to destroy each creature effortlessly. Soon, a second blur appeared, the red-and-blue afterimage joined by a red-and-yellow.

“And I’m here, too!” Flash declared as he sped through the creatures as well. Batman watched from his perch, mildly annoyed at having his thunder stolen from him, but he knew that he’d get it back soon. Accepting his fate, he reached into his utility belt and pulled out a mug somehow filled with steaming hot coffee.

“Uh, Mr. Batman?” a solider asked while Batman took a sip. “Why do you have coffee in your belt?”

Batman took another sip, watching as Superman and Flash mopped up the rest of the creatures, then turned towards the soldiers.

“Because I’m Batman.”

* * *

 

“Curse that Superman!” Lex Luthor shouted from his high-rise, looking down at the streets below. In mere moments, every single creature was killed, leaving no trace of their existence.

“Sir, I’m afraid the teams weren’t able to obtain a sample. As it turns out, there wasn’t enough time to organize before Superman and the Flash killed them all,” Mercy revealed, causing Lex to curse yet again.

“Grrh, and I was beginning to have plans for those things!” he grunted, disappointed at how a new avenue for his vengeance to explore was prematurely closed off. Then, he took a few calming breaths and a drink from his glass, and finally sighed.

“Oh well, it’s not as though we’ve invested anything substantial into them. At the very least, we can use the property damage from Superman’s superspeed in a hit piece. I want it plastered all over our news stations tonight.”

“Of course, sir. At once.”

* * *

 

**FFWD >>**

* * *

 

“Brothers and sisters, rejoice!” Brother Blood regaled to his fellow cultists. “The time of victory is nigh! Soon, we shall all achieve enlightenment!”

“Glory to the Allfather!” the cultists chanted, and Brother Blood smiled.

“Yes! Glory to the Allfather, for it is through Him that our salvation will be achieved!”

Brother Blood continued to preach to his flock, kept in rapturous attendance, only for a sudden explosion to course through the church. Brother Blood and the cultists were sent sprawling into the ground, and in a daze,  he saw the Titans march inside with their weapons drawn. The police were behind them, as were eight newcomers he didn’t recognize.

“But… I don’t…” Blood mumbled as a pair of police officers forced him to his feet and handcuffed him.

“Sebastian Blood the Seventh, you are under arrest,” one of the police officers started while another read him his rights. As he and his cultists were led outside, Brother Blood stared at the Titans with confusion. That confusion turned into fury, and as they neared one, he briefly tore away from the officers’ grip and marched up to her.

“How?!” he demanded to know. The young hooded girl slightly wavered under his gaze, then coughed.

“I mean… Raven used her magic to look into Mumbo’s mind,” she answered. “We saw you in there and figured it out.”

Blood looked at Ruby dumbfoundedly. How had he missed that oversight?

“Also, it was kind of obvious,” continued another girl, a blonde wielding a pair of gauntlets. “I mean, you call yourself ‘Brother Blood’, and lead the ‘Church of Blood’. You literally could not have chosen a more obviously evil name. Seriously, a child could have figured it out.”

“Holy cow! Guys, there’s Grimm down here!” a third voice, this one belonging to a male, declared from deep beneath Blood’s church. “And a guy, too! I think he’s been tortured!”

At once, everyone around him looked at Brother Blood with intense stares, and for once the cult leader had nothing to say. Finally, as the police grabbed hold of him once again, he found the courage to say one final declaration.

“Glory to Tri-!” he started, only for Raven to immediately shut him up with a magical barrier formed around his mouth. One by one, the rest of Blood’s cultists were piled into armored cars, and once they were filled, left to throw the criminals into jail.

“Once again, thank you, Titans,” the police chief said as he shook Starfire’s hand.

“Not a problem!” Starfire decreed jubilantly, happy at how easily Brother Blood went down. The police chief nodded, then got into his squad car and drove off, leaving the Titans behind.

“You know, I’m glad we nipped this in the bud really quick,” Nora admitted as Raven prepared to portal them home. “Like, could you imagine what could’ve happened had we decided _not_ to look into Mumbo’s mind?”

“Probably something epic and meaningful to everyone involved, but with a lot of property damage,” Beast Boy suggested. “It’s kind of how things tend to roll around here. You’ll get used to it.”

“True,” Nora nodded, and Raven finished making the portal.

“You know, I can’t help but feel that we might have prevented something important from being discovered,” Ruby suggested, tapping her finger against her chin, “but I can’t figure out what.”

“Eh, if it’s important, it’ll come back eventually.” Yang shrugged, then stepped through the portal. “Now come on. I just found this movie called ‘The Fast and the Furious’, and it looked cool. Wanna watch it with me?”

“Sure!”

* * *

 

_But this is how it_ really _Should have Ended_

* * *

 

“Look, all I’m saying is this,” Superman told Batman as they sat at their favorite booth in their favorite café. “Why does everything have to be dark and broody all the time? Whatever happened to just having fun?”

“A change in the times,” Batman pointed out as he took a sip from his coffee. “And you’re just jealous everyone’s trying to emulate me and not you.”

“That is not true,” Superman countered, pointing at Batman. “Not everything has to be like you.”

“And I’m not saying it should,” Batman said, taking another sip. “Even I thought your moody phase was a bit overbearing.”

“ _Not as bad as when he shaved!_ ” Aquaman called out as he walked on by. Superman covered his head in shame, trying to block that memory from his mind, while Batman chuckled.

“You’re right,” he continued. “Not everything has to be dark and gritty. You get too dark, people just don’t care anymore. They figure, what’s the point. It’s all about balance.”

“Yeah, I know,” Superman groaned, sitting upright. He was about to speak yet again, only to stop and focus on something faint.

“What is it?” Batman asked, slightly worried.

“I… I hear something,” Superman answered. “From deep space.”

“How can you hear something in space? There’s no air.”

“I just can! It sounds like…” Superman paused, then shot to his feet. “I gotta go!”

“Wait, what’s—” Before Batman could finish his question, Superman took off, flying at top speed through the roof of the Super Café. “Uggh, of course.”

Batman took another drink from his coffee just as a group of customers walked by his booth. When they were gone, so was he.

“Hey guys, just got our food!” Wonder Woman declared as she came back to the table, carrying trays of burgers and milkshakes. “Sorry it took so long. There was a—”

She paused and looked around the empty table, then slowly tilted her head to the hole in the roof.

“Oh, come on! Again?! You leave without me again?!”

* * *

 

“You monster!” teams RWBY and JNPR shouted as they fought Brainiac with ruthless vigor. The Coluan retaliated dispassionately, blocking their moves with ease. Any that landed did nothing to him, and one by one they fell until they lay sprawled before him.

“I told you,” he said as prepared to bottle the last city of Remnant. “I am…inevitable.”

“No!!!” Ruby shouted, reaching out with her hand as though trying to psychically stop him. Brainiac ignored her, his hand slightly pressing down on the button. Then, to her surprise, a faint rumble was heard throughout the ship, followed by an intense shake and loud squeal of metal being ripped apart. The sound was getting closer, and Brainiac sharply turned around to face a wall just as it exploded outward. As though in slow motion, Ruby saw a red-and-blue clad man wearing a cape plow into Brainiac, sending the alien warlord into a wall.

“Uh… What?” Ruby mumbled as the man flew over to her and her friends. He looked down towards them with a compassionate look, and a bombastic theme music started playing out of nowhere.

“Hello there,” he greeted with a smile.

“…Hi,” Ruby greeted back as the man helped her and her friends to their feet. As Brainiac tore himself from his ship’s hull, the man turned his head to face him.

“This guy giving you trouble?” he asked, and Jaune nodded.

“That’s one way of putting it,” Jaune spat, and the strange underwear-clad man nodded.

“How dare you?!” Brainiac cursed as he rose to his feet. “You think that you can stand against me, whose will is absolute?!”

“That may be,” the man countered, “but I believe in two absolutes. Truth, and Justice.”

With that declaration, RWBY and JNPR bore witness to the greatest fight they had ever seen, a spectacle beyond recognition. Also, a bit anti-climactic, given how easily the newcomer was tearing into Brainiac, but they honestly didn’t care about that. Soon, Brainiac lay defeated at the man’s feet, who smugly looked down upon him with his hands resting on his hips.

“Oh my…God,” Weiss muttered, while Jaune and Ruby looked at the man with stars in their eyes.

“So cool!” they both cheered, while Yang walked over to Brainiac’s unconscious body. Taking a second to look down on him, she gave Brainiac a few good kicks, letting out a few frustrations, then turned to the man.

“So, Mr.…?”

“Superman,” he answered.

“Ah, okay. Superman – by the way, awesome name, and you are officially the coolest guy I’ve ever met – how are we going to put the cities back?”

“Leave that to me,” another voice called out to them. In surprise, they all turned to see a man wearing a black batsuit walking up to Brainiac’s throne. The young huntsmen and huntresses in training were wondering where this guy came from, while Superman looked exasperated.

“Okay, how?” Superman asked as the man strapped himself in.

“Because!” he shouted as electricity coursed through his body. “I’m! BATMAN!!!”

Then, at once, blue beams shot towards the planet, putting each captured city back into its original place. When the job was finished, the ship powered down, and Batman rose out of the throne none the worse for wear. Everyone stared at each other, wondering what to do next.

“So,” Batman began, “you guys got any coffee?”

“… You know what, we actually do,” Ren said as they began to walk out the door.

* * *

 

_Later_

“Does anyone else find it weird that humans somehow exist on multiple planets?” Blake pointed out as Old Man Shopkeep gave everyone their orders.

“Eh, you get used to it after a while,” Superman replied as he drank another cup of coffee, exhausted after flying around the planet so fast to turn back time.

“But…I feel that should be something more explored.”

“Blake, just accept it and move on,” Yang insisted as they continued to eat. As they did, Batman looked over to Glynda Goodwitch and leaned closer.

“Hey, I’m Batman,” he introduced himself. “Wanna know my secret identity?”

“Not really, no,” Glynda admitted, causing Batman to sputter and Superman to laugh at his friend’s expense.

“Hey, guys!” they heard someone call in from the outside. They turned to see the Flash waving towards them, Green Lantern hovering behind him holding a group of people inside a green sphere of hard light. “Found these guys hiding out in this weird castle. This is – What was your name again, miss?”

“SALEM! AND I WILL CARVE IT INTO YOUR BONES!!!”

“Ah, that’s right. This ‘Salem’ lady was leading them. I think she’s half-Grimm. Also, she’s immortal. What do I do with her?”

“Can she be redeemed?”

“I dunno. Maybe?”

“Probably not,” Ozpin added, Salem shooting him a wrathful look, and Superman nodded.

“Throw her in the Phantom Zone. That should hold her.”

“Right, got it. Come on, everyone!”

“I HATE YOU! YOU CANNOT COMPREHEND THE POWER I WIELD!”

“Yeah, yeah. Tell that to every other supervillain we’ve come across,” Green Lantern countered. “Lady, you’re not special. Get over yourself.”

“GAGH!!”

As the group was escorted away, Professor Ozpin looked smug as he drank his hot beverage alongside the superheroes, basking in their victory. Ozpin then saw Velvet Scarlatina walk inside the café, looking around for someone, then finding the group’s table. She walked over to them, looking towards Superman.

“Um, Mr. Superman?” she asked.

“Yes, Velvet?”

“Wonder Woman’s with you, right?” Superman nodded at her question, and Velvet threw her hand back. “Well, we have a bit of a problem.”

“Oh God, tell me Cardin didn’t do something stupid,” Jaune groaned.

“Or Neptune,” Weiss added, but Velvet shook her head.

“No. I mean, they did, but she took care of that real quick. Used her Lasso of Truth on them. It was actually pretty funny.” Velvet laughed at what the two boys were subjected to, holding her hand above her mouth, but refocused herself quickly.

“Then what’s the problem?” Yang asked, and Velvet looked her in the eye.

“Coco saw her, and now I can’t get her to move.”

[~][~]


	27. Coming Home to Roost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ozpin shares the news of RWBY and JNPR's survival to his comrades, while the two teams acclimate to life in Wayne Manor.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 19: Coming Home to Roost **

[~][~]

Glynda Goodwitch sighed as she cleaned up yet another destroyed street of Vale. Rubble lined the cracked pavement, shards of glass glistening under the artificial sun. Moving her wand back and forth like a conductor, Glynda watched as the pieces slowly came together. Soon enough, the street was back to working order, or at least a close approximation of it. Cracks were still visible, and some of the buildings threatened to collapse, but she didn’t have the strength within herself to go further. There was only so much her Semblance could do to repair the damage.

“Peter, I’m finished,” she reported into her radio.

“ _That’s good to hear, Glynda,_ ” Peter replied, his once boisterous voice now subdued. “ _I’m making my way over to you now._ ”

“Of course. I’ll see you then,” Glynda said, turning the radio off. Placing the device into her pouch, she found a repaired metal bench and sat down on it. She looked out over the street, taking in its sights.

‘ _To think, it happened here,_ ’ Glynda mused, thinking back to that terrible day two months before. It was in this very spot that young Ruby Rose was captured by Brainiac and her teammates launched their desperate attempt of a rescue. None of them knew what befell the two teams, but part of Glynda didn’t want to know. She didn’t want to know what horrors Brainiac inflicted on them.

As she sighed regretfully, a pair of footsteps broke Glynda from her thoughts. Turning around, she saw Peter Port walking towards her, taking in the repaired street.

“I must say, mighty good work here Glynda,” Peter declared, trying to lift her spirits. It didn’t work, but Glynda rose to her feet all the same.

“Thank you, Peter,” Glynda told him as she walked back towards Beacon, her colleague falling in step behind her. Peter sighed as he kept pace. More than anyone, she and Ozpin were working tirelessly to help the city of Vale the best they could, whether it was repairing the physical damage or simply talking to their students. It must have been exhausting.

“Where’s Qrow?” Glynda asked, and Peter shook his head.

“The usual spot,” he answered, and Glynda frowned. She wasn’t surprised, but it disappointed her nonetheless. Still, with Ozpin inside Brainiac’s ship yet again, they both knew there was only one way for him to get back. If they were lucky, they might be able to lift his spirits during their visit.

“We’re here,” Glynda declared as they stopped in front of a makeshift bar. Tucking in her wand, Glynda walked forward and opened the door. Inside she was greeted by a repugnant smell of tobacco, vomit, and the Brothers knew what else. Patrons, both ones she recognized and ones she did not, sat in booths or chairs, drinking away as human and Faunus waitresses served them drinks.

“Uggh, I can’t believe anyone drinks this stuff,” Peter complained, and Glynda agreed with him. The supply of good, quality alcohol was quite limited post-bottling, forcing many to try their hand at moonshine. The results often weren’t pretty, but after a while a few drinkable, if not passable, brews emerged.

That didn’t mean they were pleasant to drink, nor smell.

“Found them,” Peter whispered, subtly pointing to a booth in the far corner of the room. Glynda followed his hand, finding both Qrow and Taiyang sitting by themselves, nursing bottles of moonshine in their hands. Respectfully, the two teachers made their way over to them, stopping in front of their table. Slowly, the two men turned their heads to regard them with cold, blank expressions. Glynda’s heart broke every time she saw it, even after seeing it so many times.

“… So, it’sa that time?” Qrow finally asked. “Ol’ Ozzy back up with…him?”

“Unfortunately, yes,” Peter answered. Qrow looked at them for a few more moments, then sighed and scooched over to let him sit down. Tai stayed silent, coldly regarding Glynda until he finally found it within himself to scooch over as well. Silently, Glynda sat down, the table descending into a heavy silence.

“Hello, Glyn,” a woman greeted. Glynda turned her head to regard a young woman wearing a torn red and black dress. “The usual for you and Peter?”

“Yes, Miltia. Send Junior my regards.”

“Of course.” Miltiades Malachite dutifully walked back to the bar, quickly coming back with bottles filled with room temperature water. “Be sure to leave the bottle. You break it, you’re paying for it.”

“I know the rules, Ms. Malachite,” Peter reminded her, but the former criminal frowned and pointed at Qrow.

“I was talking to him.”

With that, Miltia walked away, leaving the table in silence once again. The four former guardians of Remnant pondered what to say, but none of them felt the urge to speak first. It was almost becoming unbearable, and so Peter cleared his throat with a mighty cough.

“Well, hanging out in a low-brow pub such as this reminds of a time when—” he began, only for Tai to shoot him a look. Taken aback, Peter silenced himself, and Taiyang looked away. The message received, Peter frowned and looked down at the table before taking a swig of his water. It tasted foul, but it had to do.

They then heard a ping inside the bar, followed by the simultaneous clicks of dozens of safeties being switched off. As Glynda turned to face Raven’s portal, she saw that every single patron was aiming their guns, both professionally forged and makeshift, at it. More specifically, at the female figure that walked through it. Raven ignored all their hateful glares, knowing they wouldn’t do anything.

“ _Raven_ ,” Qrow spat towards his sister, who impassively looked at him from behind her mask. Placing her hand on her hip, she leaned slightly back.

“Hello, brother. Drunk again? Can’t say I’m surprised. My, how you have fallen.”

“Funny, I could say the same thing to you,” Qrow shot back. When Raven merely chuckled at his retort, Qrow shot to his feet, only to stumble torpidly. Peter caught him, shooting Raven a glare as well. Glynda and Taiyang remained silent through it all, staring at Raven with murderous eyes. Although in Tai’s case, it was a mixture of complex emotions that Glynda could never hope to fully understand.

“I suggest we calm down,” Ozpin suggested. So focused on Raven, Glynda had hardly even noticed Ozpin’s arrival, and to her surprise found him to be completely unharmed. Usually he came back with either a haunted expression or a pained limp, but now he seemed almost…joyful.

“Indeed. The last thing I want to do is to hurt my baby brother,” Raven stated. She then turned to face the rest of the patrons, who unconsciously flinched back except for Miltia, her sister Melanie Malachite, and Hei ‘Junior’ Xiong. Smirking under her mask, Raven walked towards them, who stared back with unflinching resolve.

“Get the hell out of my bar,” he ordered, and Raven’s smirk grew. Lifting her mask atop her head to expose her face, Raven reached over and grabbed a bottle from his shelf, opened it against the counter, and drank it all in one go. When she was finished, she wiped the excess off her mouth and tossed the bottle over her shoulder, the glass shattering against the splintered wood floor.

“As you wish,” she mocked, then turned around and walked through the portal she created. It closed behind her, leaving the bar pointing their guns at an empty space. Scowling, Junior holstered his bat-rocket launcher and angrily looked towards Qrow.

“You’re paying for that,” he stated, and Qrow sighed.

“Just put it on my tab,” Qrow said while waving his hand in a circle, but Ozpin shook his head.

“That won’t be necessary, Qrow. Junior, I will gladly pay for it,” Ozpin stated.

“Don’t really care who does, just want it done.”

Ozpin nodded, then reached into his pocket and pulled out a small Dust crystal fragment. Junior took it, testing the crystal for authenticity, then nodded. Ozpin nodded back, then turned towards his colleagues.

“We’re going back to Beacon,” he said. “All of us, including you two, Qrow and Tai.”

“Hmm?” Qrow hummed, raising an eyebrow. Tai stayed silent, wondering what Ozpin wanted to speak about, but didn’t find it in himself to really care. Without saying a word, he rose to his feet alongside his fellow patrons, dropped off a few Dust fragments on the table to pay for his tab alongside Qrow’s small pile, and then left.

“Oh, and Peter?” Ozpin asked as they left the building.

“Yes, Ozpin?”

“Have Bart bring James and Winter with him. There’s something I need to share with all of you.”

* * *

 

They were alive. That was the only thought racing through any of their minds right now. Teams RWBY and JNPR were alive. Not only that, they had somehow managed to _escape._ Leo’s apparent betrayal barely even registered on their minds, even if Ozpin was only ‘almost certain’ of it.

“Are you sure?” Tai demanded, and Ozpin nodded.

“One-hundred percent.”

“You better not be bullshitting me, Oz,” Qrow angrily said.

“I’m not, Qrow. Your nieces, along with the rest of teams RWBY and JNPR, are alive. Where they are, I do not know.”

“How do we know Brainiac isn’t lying?” James asked, running his metallic hand across his beard. His question was an apt one, and it was something that Ozpin himself had been ruminating over ever since that first game.

“He had no reason to lie to me, at least not in this way,” Ozpin answered, sitting down on his chair. “For one, the rules of my cooperation were simple and straightforward, not to mention slanted in his favor. Given how Brainiac is a creature of pure logic, it wouldn’t make sense to lie at this stage, otherwise my cooperation would be jeopardized.”

“Beyond that,” Bartholomew Oobleck began to muse, “if he were to lie about teams RWBY and JNPR, it would make more sense to say that they were dead, or at the very least captured. He could have even told you that they had betrayed us, like Raven Branwen and, apparently, Leo Lionheart. No, instead he states that the two teams were not only alive, but instead had escaped. What advantage would he have gained by lying about that?”

“Yes,” Peter Port quietly stated, rubbing his hands together, “it appears our captor may have been telling the truth. They escaped.”

The teachers sat in silence as they each contemplated the news. Each felt a sense of joyful relief flood their minds, none more so than Taiyang and Qrow. For two months, they had thought the most important people in their lives were dead, but to hear that they managed to escape… The feelings they had couldn’t even be put into words.

Ozpin nodded, then stood up and walked to his balcony. “Yes, they’re alive. More importantly, out of Brainiac’s reach.”

“For now,” James tersely replied, bringing a frown to all their faces.

“Indeed. I got the sense that was the hidden meaning behind Brainiac’s words. They had a sense of…inevitability to them.”

“I swear to the Brothers, if he touches her…” Winter darkly muttered, clenching her fists. Glynda, meanwhile, sighed ruefully.

“I can’t even imagine what they’re going through right now,” Glynda said, clenching her hands together. “Eight teenagers, alone on an alien world. Without their friends or family to support them. They must be so scared, so confused.”

“Yes…” Ozpin whispered, looking down. A key part of Brainiac’s admission was that he didn’t know where the two teams had landed after their trip through a Boom Tube. It could have ended very badly for them, but he refused to believe that. He had previously thought that their escape was a miraculous impossibility, but here he stood proclaiming it to his friends and allies as the absolute truth.

“Still, I believe that, wherever they may be, they’re in good health and spirits. They’ve surprised us so far, who’s to say they won’t again?”

* * *

 

_November 4, 6:00 AM_

_Wayne Manor, Gotham City_

Weiss Schnee was roused by beams of sunlight hitting her closed eyes. With a groan, she slowly blinked them open to look at the rest of her team. Unlike her, they were still asleep. Yang was softly snoring, her right arm and leg hanging off the side of the bed while drool dripped down the side of her mouth. Blake, in contrast to her partner, was curled to her side, snuggled under the lush blankets of her bed. Ruby was breathing lightly, her head pointing at the red canopy over her bed. For a moment, Weiss wondered whether she should get out of bed and rouse her teammates, but the bed just felt so _nice_.

‘ _No. A few more minutes of sleep won’t hurt…_ ’ Weiss thought to herself as she rolled over so that her back faced the window. With the sun no longer bothering her eyes, Weiss smiled and began to fall back to sleep.

After what seemed like only a few minutes, Weiss heard the door creak open. Frowning, she pulled the covers over her more tightly, trying to drown the noise. All she wanted right now was sleep, not this distraction. Weiss then felt a pressure on her hair, and she swatted the pressure away like an annoying fly. It came again, and with a deeper frown and groan, she swatted the pressure away again.

When it didn’t come back, Weiss smiled at her victory. She snuggled in her bed once more, feeling herself fall back to sleep. Then, she felt a new pressure pull against her hair. It was like the faint tug of a rope, coupled with the chattering of solid objects mashing against each other. With a groan, Weiss realized what was happening.

“Ruby…,” she began, “stop chewing on my hair…”

“I’m not doing it this time…” Ruby protested, half-asleep.

“Oh. Then who is?” Weiss asked, slightly turning her head. She stared into a pair of deep brown eyes, then nodded.

“Never mind, it’s just a cow. Go back to sleep,” Weiss said.

“’Kay,” Ruby replied, and the room descended into silence once again. Weiss closed her eyes, feeling slumber come back to her.

Her mind then fully comprehended what she had seen, and her eyes shot open. With a start, her body bolted upright, and she turned to look at a large brown and white bovine standing before her bed. The rest of team RWBY had bolted upright as well, and they all stared in absolute bewilderment.

“…”

“…”

“Moo.”

“… AAAGH!”

* * *

 

“Now then, Master Damian, you must be polite to our guests,” Alfred reminded Damian as he prepared the day’s breakfast.

“I know, Alfred,” Damian replied with a huff as he sat on a chair. “I’ll be nice to father’s latest adoptions.”

“Damian,” Alfred chastised. The two stared at each other, then Damian Wayne sighed and nodded.

“Fine, I’ll play nice.”

“Thank you, Young Master Damian,” Alfred said as he turned back to his cooking. “I’m certain that you and they will get along quite well. Shame you couldn’t meet them when they arrived last night.”

“I was on patrol, Alfred. Besides, I already met them when Scarecrow attacked again.”

“Oh, is that so? And what did you think of them?”

“That they’re impulsive and reckless, charging into situations they are not prepared for. Not to mention inexperienced.”

“Hmm, reminds me of a young boy trying to impress his father,” Alfred replied, causing Damian to frown. Before he could retort, they heard a shrill scream echo across Wayne Manor. Both Alfred and Damian sharply turned their heads towards the source, realizing it came from RWBY’s shared room. In an instant, Damian vaulted over the table and sprinted down the hall, Alfred following behind him. His mind raced through the possibilities of what would have caused one of them to scream.

As Alfred turned the corner, hearing shouts, he saw team JNPR’s doors wide open. Undoubtedly, they had heard the scream and raced towards their friends, and when he saw Damian rush through RWBY’s slightly slanted door, a pit formed in his stomach. Then a new sound graced his ears, causing him to slow down. Was that…laughter?

“What in the world…?” he asked himself as he entered the room. He then immediately got his answer as he saw a furious Weiss being held back by Ruby, Jaune, Blake, and Pyrrha. Ren was trying to use his Semblance on the furious blancette to no avail. Weiss herself was trying to stab Myrtenaster at a large brown-and-white bovine, who was being protected by a furious Damian, while Nora was petting the creature affectionately.

Yang was laughing so hard that tears were coming out of her eyes.

“I WILL KILL THAT THING AND TURN IT INTO A BURGER!!”

“YOU TOUCH BAT-COW, AND I WILL STAB YOU!!!”

“’BAT-COW’?! HAHAHAHA!”

* * *

 

It took another ten minutes to finally calm Weiss down. During that time, the rest of the manor’s inhabitants had woken up and had gone to check on the commotion. Their reactions were along the same lines as Yang’s, that being unabashed amusement. Some, like Jason, were more content to outwardly display their feelings on the event, while others like Cassandra settled for a wry smile. Still, eventually order was reestablished, and Damian escorted Bat-Cow back to her enclosure.

“Oh man, I haven’t laughed that hard in _months_ ,” Yang admitted as the group settled down in one of the manor’s many dining rooms. “Thank you.”

“So glad I can be of service,” Weiss growled as she drove her fork into an omelet. The former heiress found the dish to be delicious, but right now she was in no mood to give out compliments. When Damian finally came back inside, she glared at him as hard as she could, which he pointedly ignored.

“Bat-Cow’s back in her enclosure,” he revealed, Yang snickering at the name as he sat down.

“That’s good to hear. She wasn’t scared, was she?” Ruby asked, her mouth slightly filled with food.

“Not at all,” Damian admitted. “I actually think she liked her little exploration.”

“’Exploration?’” Weiss asked, causing Damian to turn towards her.

“Yes. Cows are very curious creatures, and it’s not my fault you didn’t lock your door.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Forgive me for not thinking a _cow_ would waltz into my room at the crack of dawn.”

“You’re forgiven,” Damian stated, causing Weiss to shoot back an offended look while Yang and Ruby stifled their laughter. Weiss looked ready to retort, only for Stephanie Brown to clear her throat.

“My, Damian. You work fast. Making friends already?” she questioned. Damian Wayne lightly glared at her, but the young girl stared back just as hard with a smile on her face. Finally, he relented and sighed.

“Weiss, I…apologize for what happened,” he finally said with a slight frown. Weiss stared with slightly lidded eyes at him, then nodded.

“You’re forgiven,” she replied, going back to her breakfast. “How did she get out, anyway?”

“She broke the lock,” Damian answered, causing the Remnantians to stare at him.

“She…broke the lock?” Jaune finally got out, and Damian nodded.

“Yes, she did.”

“…How?” Blake asked, only for Stephanie Brown to put her hand on the Faunus’ shoulder and shake her head.

“Don’t bother asking,” Stephanie told Blake. “That cow…she kinda does things.”

A moment of silence passed before anyone said anything else, only being broken by Yang shrugging and digging back into her meal. The others took that as their cue to continue their breakfast, and soon the dining room was filled with small conversation.

“Hey, Al?” Yang called out to Alfred as he returned, refilling everyone’s drinks. “These eggs are amazing.”

“Thank you, Miss Xiao Long,” Alfred stated as he poured her another glass of water before turning to refill Ruby’s glass of milk.

“So,” Pyrrha began, “we didn’t get the chance to introduce ourselves last time we met. I’m Pyrrha Nikos, this is my partner and leader, Jaune Arc, and my teammates, Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie.”

Ren and Jaune politely waved while Nora did so enthusiastically. The teenage vigilantes nodded in kind, allowing Ruby the chance to introduce herself and her team.

“I’m Ruby Rose. That’s my sister, Yang Xiao Long,” she pointed to her sister, who smiled and snapped a two-finger wave, “and that’s her partner, Blake Belladonna. You’ve already met my partner, Weiss Schnee.”

“Right, Miss Cow-Hair,” Jason joked, causing the table to laugh and Weiss to huff. When they calmed down again, Jason started speaking. “I’m Jason Todd. In the field, you can call me Red Hood.”

“I’m Stephanie Brown. You can call me Spoiler.”

“Tim Drake, the Red Robin.”

“I’m Damian Wayne, the true son of the Batman and the current Robin,” Damian finished with a hint of haughtiness, causing his predecessors to roll their eyes. He then gestured towards the half-Asian girl sitting next to him. “This is Cassandra Cain, the current Batgirl.”

“Pleased to meet you,” Ren stated, his friends and teammates following suit. Once introductions were done, the group sat back down to continue eating, but something was on the Verdant Lotus’ mind. “Forgive me, but Damian. You said you’re the ‘current’ Robin?”

“That’s right,” Damian answered while crossing his arms.

“Young Master Damian is actually the fifth Robin,” Alfred explained as he reentered the room. “Master Richard was the first, followed by Master Jason, Master Timothy, and finally Miss Stephanie. For almost as long as there’s been a Batman, there has been a Robin fighting by his side.”

“Oh, like a sidekick,” Jaune suggested, only for the assembled Robins to glare at him.  “Not that you guys are sidekicks! You’re partners!”

“That’s better,” Stephanie said, half-serious.

“Anyway,” Pyrrha continued, wiping some crumbs off the corner of her mouth. “How’d you guys manage to get roped in on this?”

“Oh, that’s quite the long tale,” Tim declared as he finished his breakfast. “We could spend the next hour going over our origin stories, but I won’t bore with you with the details. To summarize, Jason tried to steal the Batmobile’s tires but was caught by Bruce, I sought him out directly, Stephanie became Robin to help stop her father, and Damian was—"

“I was born for it,” Damian declared with a proud huff, causing Tim to groan.

“There he goes again,” Jason muttered under his breath. Damian shot him a glare, but before he could speak again, Alfred stepped back into the room.

“Now then. I’m afraid that since we arrived so late last night, I couldn’t properly show you the premises. If you would follow me,” he said, gesturing towards the door. Teams RWBY and JNPR nodded before rising out of their seats, the rest of the teenagers doing the same. As they exited the room, Weiss stopped by Alfred with a calm smile on her face, her hands crossed before her waist.

“Mister Pennyworth, I just wanted to thank you for breakfast this morning. It was exquisite,” Weiss stated, causing Alfred to smile.

“It’s no problem, Miss Schnee. And please, call me Alfred.”

* * *

 

Both team RWBY and team JNPR knew that Wayne Manor was big, but it was only after receiving the grand tour that they realized just how big.

“And this,” Alfred continued as he led them into the next room, “is Master Bruce’s private library. The entire extensive history of the Wayne family, stretching back all the way to the Crusades, is chronicled in this room. You’ll find no greater source of knowledge about Gotham’s history, as well. When he was younger, Master Bruce loved to spend much of his time here, and I’m certain you will as well.”

“I know I will,” Blake muttered under her breath as she eyed the impressive collection of fiction and nonfiction books. Yang smiled at her partner’s reaction, figuring this would happen, then allowed herself the chance to take in the scenery.

“Whew,” she whistled, “gotta say, this is a nice place. Lotta black, though.”

“Oh, you’ll find that Master Bruce has a _particular_ fondness for that color,” Alfred quipped, and Yang cracked a smile. She only knew this butler for less than a day, and already she was beginning to like him.

“Hey, Weiss?” Ruby asked. “You lived in a mansion, right?”

Weiss nodded at Ruby’s question. “Yes, I did. My grandfather had it constructed when he made his fortune.”

“That’s similar to Wayne manor,” Alfred said. “It was constructed in the mid-1800s by Alan Wayne and has been the home of the Wayne Family ever since. However, it must be said that the building itself is not the original construction. It has been destroyed several times, most recently about a decade ago during the Darkseid War.”

“I keep hearing about how bad that war was,” Ren noted with a frown.

“Indeed. I imagine it was quite close to your own personal experiences,” Alfred replied, and they nodded. Alfred nodded back in understanding. “Yes, I thought so. You have my condolences, for as much as they’re worth.”

“Thank you, Alfred,” Weiss said with a warm smile. As Alfred Pennyworth led them to the next room, Weiss couldn’t help but compare Mayne Manor with Schnee Manor. She found a lot of similarities between them. Both were founded by a wealthy, philanthropic ancestor, Nicholas Schnee and Alan Wayne, respectively, and had housed generations of their families. But that was where the similarities ended. In terms of differences, there was the obvious choice in color scheme. Schnee Manor, at least by her time, had become a pearlescent white and light blue, creating a sense of being above it all, not to mention oppressive in its flawlessness. Wayne Manor, in contrast, was a much earthlier dark, with blacks and browns and reds. It felt lived in, down to earth, whereas Schnee Manor looked as though it considered itself above everyone else.

It was liberating to her.

“And this,” Alfred stated, interrupting her thoughts, “is Master Bruce’s personal study. Although, to be fair, he doesn’t really use it that much. It was mostly used by his father, Thomas. Martha liked to stay in the library, which is why Thomas Wayne had his study located close by.”

“Aww,” Ruby cooed, then frowned as she fully registered the first part of Alfred’s statement. “Oh…”

At once the other huntsmen and huntresses realized what Ruby was silently referring to, then winced. There was a reason why Bruce Wayne didn’t use this study that often, and from what they knew of that horrible night, they didn’t blame him. They thought about inquiring about the infamous Wayne Family Murders in Park Row, about Crime Alley, but knew it wouldn’t be appropriate. Despite it being decades since that night, they could tell that for both Alfred Pennyworth and, without question, Bruce Wayne himself, the wound was still fresh.

Alfred allowed the teenagers to check the room while he continued discussing facets of Thomas and Martha Wayne’s former lives. Pyrrha listened intently as she ran her fingers along the wall. It felt rough from the age, telling her that it was well used. Out of curiosity, she decided to reach out with her Semblance. During her time with the Titans, Richard had mentioned the possibility of trying to use her Semblance as an extension of her senses, a thought she remained intrigued by. She wondered if she could feel the support structure of the building, or at least the nails in the wood.

So, it was a surprise to the Crimson Guardian when, in addition to the expected nails and electrical wiring, Pyrrha sensed a series of metal beams stretching into the wall and deep beneath the ground.

“What the…?” she whispered as she ran her finger along the metal’s path, trying to find where it ended. The others were too engrossed in their own observations of the study, or in Weiss’ case discussing with Alfred the finer details of the Wayne family’s history, to notice except for Jaune. With an arched eyebrow, he walked over to Pyrrha to check on her, but before he could get a word in, Pyrrha extended a finger upwards to silence him. She was deep in concentration, and Jaune knew better than to try and interrupt her.

Finally, Pyrrha found herself at a large grandfather clock situated on the far internal wall of the study. Alfred finally noticed her standing in front of it, then walked over.

“Ah, I see you found the grandfather clock. Unfortunately, it doesn’t quite work anymore. More of a decorative piece, really,” he stated, prompting Pyrrha to look at him strangely.

“Really?” she asked, and Alfred nodded. He then gestured for the group to continue with him, intending to show them the wine cellar in the basement. Jaune followed them, only to stop when he noticed that Pyrrha was still standing in front of the broken clock. He walked back over to her and stood before it.

“… There’s something behind there, isn’t there?” Jaune asked, and Pyrrha nodded. “Secret door?”

“Probably,” Pyrrha admitted with a gleeful smile on her face. “Oh, I hope it’s a puzzle!”

Jaune chuckled and patted her shoulder. “So… Wanna try and figure it out?”

Pyrrha looked at her leader, then smiled.

* * *

 

“And finally, we have the back patio,” Alfred finished their tour of the premises. In the distance, the teenagers could see a small farm with a few animals located within, including the same cow who had managed to sneak into RWBY’s room to take a bite out of Weiss’ hair. She frowned towards the bovine, who seemed to stare right back at her. It tellingly bit into some straw while still staring at her, and Weiss scrunched her eyes.

“Oh, I’m watching you, Bat-Cow,” Weiss declared with utter seriousness, causing Yang to chuckle.

“You know, I have to ask, what’s the deal with, hrk, Bat-Cow?” Yang asked, and Alfred smiled.

“Master Damian brought her home one day while coming back from patrol,” Alfred answered. “Apparently, he chased some criminals to a slaughterhouse they were using as a front. Damian rescued Bat-Cow from there and, on that day, declared Bat-Cow to be his and that he was now a vegetarian.”

“Aw,” Nora cooed as she smiled and waved towards the bovine. She then turned around to look at Alfred, only pausing as she finally noticed something was off. Narrowing her eyes, she tallied up each person present, only to find that they were two short.

“Hey, where’s Jaune and Pyrrha?” she asked, causing the others to look at her in confusion. When they noticed that Jaune and Pyrrha were indeed missing, they swiveled their heads around to try and find them.

“They were right behind me…” Ruby noted as she continued to try and find them. Weiss’ eyes then widened, and she sighed.

“They’re still at that clock, aren’t they?” Weiss asked. The others thought back, and a chorus of ‘ohs’ passed through the air.

“Pyrrha was interested in that clock,” Ren remembered, then looked at Alfred. “Is there a reason for that?”

“Well,” Alfred began, rubbing his hand over the top of his glove. “Yes, but Master Bruce had instructed me that—”

“I GOT IT!!!” They heard Pyrrha shout jubilantly from the study’s window. “I KNEW IT, THERE’S A SECRET DOOR!!!”

The others looked up at the window in question, then back at Alfred with pointed stares. With a sigh, Alfred beckoned them back into Wayne Manor.

“Well, Master Bruce wanted to show you this himself, but I suppose we can go down early.”

“Go down? Down to where?” Blake asked as they followed the butler, but Alfred only smiled.

* * *

 

When they finally reunited with Jaune and Pyrrha, they were greeted by what could only be described as an organized mess. Neatly stacked piles of papers and books were placed into distinct groups, organized by subject. They were able to recognize a few common themes, namely Gotham and Wayne Family histories.

“We were gone for only thirty minutes…” Blake muttered before they finally saw the beaming look on Pyrrha’ face. Jaune was next to her, giving an embarrassed shrug.

“Well,” Alfred began, looking at the mess before him, “at the very least you kept it organized. Thank you for making my job easier, Miss Nikos.”

At once, the proud smile on Pyrrha’s face disappeared as she finally realized what she had done. An embarrassed blush overtook her, and she frantically began to apologize.

“Alfred, I am so-!”

“Pyrrha, it’s fine. Trust me,” Alfred interjected, causing Pyrrha to silence herself. The butler then turned to the nearest stack, saw it was a chronicle of Gotham’s history, then nodded. “So, before we clean this up, mind telling me what you were doing?”

“Oh, well, um…” Pyrrha began, “I used my Semblance to scan the walls. I was trying to see the supports, but instead I saw a metal structure behind the clock. Jaune and I figured it was a secret passage, and…”

“And you wanted to open it, is that it?” Alfred finished for her, and Pyrrha slowly nodded. Alfred took another look at the mess, and Jaune scrunched his face and stepped forward.

“The mess is my fault,” he admitted. “I had the idea that there’d be some clues around here that could help us.”

“Did that help?” Alfred asked, genuinely curious and slightly impressed.

“Not really.” Jaune sheepishly scratched his cheek. “In the end, Pyrrha used her Semblance again and happened upon the right combination of the clock hands.”

At Jaune’s admission, the two teams looked at the clock in question. It had been separated from the wall, revealing that Pyrrha was correct in that there was, indeed, a secret passageway leading underground. A few lights lined the rocky walls, but a curve prevented them from seeing all the way down. They then looked at the clock’s face, and saw it was set to ’10:47’. Something about that time seemed significant, but for the life of them they couldn’t see why. Alfred, however, did know its importance and frowned. He then sighed and rubbed his arm.

“… That’s when it happened, isn’t it?” Nora quietly asked. A heavy silence descended over the group, and after a while Alfred ruefully nodded.

“Yes.” His simple statement sucked the air out of the room. Pyrrha frowned, feeling shame course through her, only to feel Alfred’s hand gently clasp her shoulder. “Please don’t feel upset, Pyrrha. You didn’t know. If anything, I think Master Bruce will be impressed that you managed to figure it out, then modify the entrance to ensure no one else can figure it out like you did.”

“O… Of course,” Pyrrha nodded. Alfred smiled and patted her shoulder, then they all began the process of cleaning up the mess. Once they were finished, he beckoned them to follow.

“Come now, this is the final room,” he revealed as he entered the secret passageway. Alfred waited at the threshold, and one after another the eight Remnantians made their way past him. Once everyone was inside, Alfred closed the door behind them. They heard heavy locks clamp shut behind them and waited for Alfred to take the lead once again.

As they continued down the tunnel, the only sound they heard was their feet pounding against rock. Eventually, however, natural rock gave way to metal. The tunnel soon ended at a grated elevator, large enough for all of them to stand comfortably inside. Alfred opened it, allowing the teenagers to step inside. After closing the grate, he pulled a lever, and the elevator began its rapid descent.

“As we go down,” Alfred explained, “a bit of history. You see, Wayne Manor had been constructed over a large cave network, which the Wayne Family utilized as part of the Underground Railroad to help escaped slaves hide from their pursuers.”

Blake felt her respect for the Wayne Family rise exponentially upon hearing that, as did the rest of the huntsmen and huntresses, but respectfully allowed Alfred to continue.

“For many years after that, the caves went unused, eventually becoming home to a large colony of bats. At one time, these bats frightened Master Bruce when he was a young child, but they eventually became an inspiration. Just as bats frightened him, he would take the symbol of the bat to frighten his enemies and the criminals who not only took his parents from him, but who continued to plague Gotham City.”

The elevator stopped, and teams RWBY and JNPR stepped out into the cave. They gasped in wonder as they saw not a large natural formation, but instead a mixture of metal and machines interwoven into the rocky outcrops. Parked on a circular platform was the Batmobile, currently undergoing maintenance. Above it, housed in a specialized hangar, was the Batwing. Along one of the walls was a glass collection of various Batsuits and Robin outfits. A series of artifacts were stationed on pedestals all around the cave, serving as trophies of past victories. A few that stood out were a large t-rex that was positioned in a proud roar to the heavens, and a giant penny next to an equally giant joker playing card. Along the back wall, stationed at the top of a wide flight of stairs, sat one of the largest computers they had ever seen. Its screen was blank except for the lone Batsymbol standing in its center.

“RWBY, JNPR, I welcome you to the Batcave.”

* * *

 

The group spent the next thirty minutes checking every nook and cranny of the Batcave, while Alfred briefly left to pick up the mess upstairs. The former huntsmen-and-huntresses-in-training found it impressive, both in terms of how it seamlessly meshed with the natural landscape as well as its utility. They also found it to be cool, which Yang, Nora, Ruby, and Jaune were far more willing to admit than the rest.

“How did you guys build this?” Weiss asked as she inspected Bruce’s collection of past suits. “There’s no way all of this went unnoticed.”

“It’s not like we built it all at one time,” Alfred replied as he stood in front of Bruce’s very first Batsuit, a simple one made of black and dark grey cloth. “What you see now is the result of many years of construction between Master Bruce and me. Once the Young Masters arrived, they too helped to expand it to its current state.”

“Ah, that makes more sense,” Weiss admitted with a nod. She had wondered how Bruce Wayne could have built all this underground without anyone saying anything, but if they slowly expanded it from a base over many years, it would be easier to hide it. If there was one thing she had learned about Bruce Wayne, the Batman, since her arrival on Earth, it was that he was very secretive, not to mention paranoid.

She briefly frowned and bit her lip, thinking of a dark possibility, but threw the thought to the back of her head. Weiss then turned back to face the rest of the cave, folding her arms in front of her waist.

“I’m curious,” she started. “What was the first thing installed here?”

“That,” Alfred answered while pointing to the large computer. Weiss saw Nora trying to mess with it, but Ren was holding her back. “Cutting edge technology, some of the finest Wayne Enterprises has ever produced, actually.”

“What’s it called?”

“That depends.” Alfred chuckled. “When we first installed it, the computer was simply the GCD, standing for ‘Gotham Crime Database.’ But, when Master Richard was adopted and started his training, he started calling it the ‘Batcomputer’. As you can see, it stuck.”

“The ‘Batcomputer’?” Yang called out with a loud laugh, currently inspecting the Batmobile alongside Ruby. Alfred nodded, and Yang laughed harder. “Seriously, is everything bat-themed with this guy? First the Batmobile, then the Batwing, now the Batcomputer? What’s next, the Batboat? Batcycle? BatOS?”

“All named by Master Richard,” Alfred responded. Yang laughed again, while Weiss shook her head. She wasn’t surprised Dick had named them as such, given how young he was. Still, the fact was that Dick had left Bruce behind years ago, yet he continued the tradition of naming his equipment after bats. Weiss smiled at that thought, thinking it was sweet, but any further thoughts were broken when they heard the elevator begin to descend. They all turned their attention towards it and saw Bruce, Jason, Stephanie, Cassandra, and Damian coming down it. Bruce had a slightly stern look on his face, which was matched by Damian, while Stephanie and Jason just looked smug. Cassandra’s stoic face, however, was impossible to read.

“Ah, Master Bruce,” Alfred greeted them with a slight bow. “Apologies for the early arrival, but Miss Nikos and Mister Arc happened to chance upon the clock entrance.”

“I figured,” Bruce answered, having considered this possibility.

“Regardless,” he continued as he walked to the center of the Batcave, “we were coming down here eventually, even if this is sooner than I had wanted.”

“Any reason for that?” Yang asked, crossing her arms.

“I haven’t yet fully adjusted the training courses for you all yet,” Bruce answered. “They wouldn’t be ready for a few more hours. Also, I had wanted you all to acclimate to your new setting a bit longer.”

The Remnantians thought it over for a moment, then nodded in acceptance. They waited for Bruce to continue as he folded his arms behind his back and began to pace.

“Your home is very nice, Mr. Wayne,” Ruby said with a warm smile. Bruce looked at her for a moment, then stoically nodded in thanks.

“Thank you for having us,” Pyrrha added. “Sorry for the mess.”

“No need to apologize,” Bruce insisted. “In fact, I commend you on your initiative as well as exposing a weakness in my home’s security. That will not happen again.”

“Of course,” Pyrrha replied. Bruce then began to pace, addressing all his charges.

“Still, I might as well take the opportunity to address my expectations,” Bruce began. “As the League member in charge of your training and development, I intend to push all of you towards the limits of your potential. Once we reach those limits, we will then try to push past even them.”

The huntsmen-and-huntresses-in-training grew excited as Bruce continued to speak. Although the Batman may not be the most powerful League member, they couldn’t deny his skill as a crimefighter. The footage they saw of his many fights, including his actions during Scarecrow’s attacks, had impressed them all deeply. That had only further increased when they saw the fruits of his labors with Nightwing, a man whom they all deeply respected as fighter, leader, and friend.

“What can we expect?” Pyrrha asked, raising her hand. Bruce nodded as he turned his head to address her.

“Everything,” he answered. “Not just fighting skills, but also mental faculties, strength and endurance training, how to cover your various weakness, and more. I have also taken the liberty of enrolling you all in online courses from Gotham University so that you can continue your actual education.”

“You did?” Jaune asked, slightly surprised. “Wait, is that why we had to take those tests back at Titans Tower?”

“Yes,” Bruce immediately answered. “Given how Beacon Academy doesn’t officially exist on Earth, I couldn’t pull your records from there. Luckily, you all placed at the collegiate level, even you Ruby.”

Ruby blushed with slight embarrassment as she muttered a thanks, but Bruce continued.

“Although I wanted to delay your training a while longer, if you are up to it, we can start now.”

“I see no reason why not,” Yang replied with a shrug. “Besides, the earlier we start, the better right?”

“Yeah, I agree with Yang!” Nora exclaimed excitedly, slightly bouncing up and down. The rest of the two teams quickly joined in their affirmations, and Bruce let out a ghost of a smile.

“Good. Now then, let’s split you off into groups.”

* * *

 

Ruby eyed Cassandra Cain curiously as she and the younger girl walked over to the training mat. As they faced each other, Ruby turned to face Bruce, who was watching over them intently. Weiss was also standing next to him, keeping a close eye on her partner.

“So, um, Mr. Wayne?” Ruby asked with a small wave.

“Yes, Ruby?” he responded, tapping a few buttons on a pad.

“What exactly am I doing down here?”

“We’re working on your hand-to-hand combat while your weapon is being reconstructed,” he answered, causing Ruby to nod.

“Ah.” She then scratched her cheek, but before she could ask another question, Weiss beat her to the punch.

“Let’s face it, Ruby. Without your weapon, you’re at a significant disadvantage. More so than the rest of us,” Weiss flat out declared. Ruby pouted at her partner, only to slightly deflate when Bruce nodded. Not only that, so did the rest of her team, at least the ones who had overheard their discussion. She thought back, then sighed as she found herself agreeing with their assessment.

“Weiss is correct,” Bruce continued. “It’s why I’m having you and Cassandra spar against each other. Cassandra’s an expert in body reading, and she’ll be able to help you considerably.”

“Oh, okay,” Ruby replied as she turned to face Cassandra yet again. The young Batgirl was stretching, prompting Ruby to quickly do the same. Wanting to lighten the mood, Ruby decided to strike up a conversation. “So, thanks for sparring against me.”

Cassandra said nothing, however she did nod in acknowledgement. Happy at her progress, Ruby continued her stretching, then readied herself. As much as it pained her to admit it, Ruby knew that she was terrible at hand-to-hand. Still, she didn’t want to make herself look bad, and so she looked to Yang for guidance.

“Don’t think I’ll go easy on you,” Ruby said with a smile, emulating her sister. Cassandra smirked back, then lowered herself.

“Are you ready?” Bruce asked. Ruby, leaning forward, nodded. Bruce looked towards Cassandra, who nodded as well. “Begin.”

“Alright!” Ruby shouted as she ran towards Cassandra, who kept herself low to the ground. The Red Reaper continued her advance, rearing her fist back to throw the first punch. With a shout, she thrust her arm forward, aiming for Cassandra’s face.

Just as her arm moved, however, Cassandra reacted. The Batgirl dodged the attack effortlessly, then pivoted her body to grab onto Ruby’s outstretched arm. Using the older girl’s momentum, Cassandra lifted Ruby off the ground and flipped her. Ruby was slammed into the ground with enough force to knock the air out of her lungs, and Cassandra flipped back to give her some breathing room.

“Wha-what just…?” Ruby wondered as she pushed herself off the ground.

“You were too obvious,” Bruce answered, cutting her off. “You were also holding yourself back. I encourage you not to. Trust me, she can handle it.”

Ruby shot a look towards Bruce then back towards Cassandra. Again, the young girl had a stoic look on her face, yet it now held a semblance of smug satisfaction in it. Ruby narrowed her eyes, then leaned forward yet again.

“Again,” Bruce ordered, and at once Ruby shot forward towards Cassandra. This time, she used a bit of her Semblance to enhance her speed, hoping that would give her the edge. Throwing another punch, this time it was a feint as she quickly shifted towards throwing her other arm. To Ruby’s surprise, however, Cassandra reacted to her feint instantly, grabbing Ruby’s arm and sending it down. Before Ruby could even react, Cassandra added Ruby’s momentum to her own, elbowing the huntress in the face and sending her reeling back. As Ruby stumbled, Cassandra kneed Ruby’s stomach, making her double over. Cassandra allowed herself to fall back, grabbing hold of Ruby’s arms and using her legs to push Ruby with her, turning her fall into a roll that ended with Ruby pinned to the ground beneath her. Once again, Ruby was stunned into silence before trying to move once again, but Cassandra kept her pinned to the ground.

“That’s enough,” Bruce stated. At once, Cassandra leapt off Ruby. The Red Reaper, breathing heavily, rose to her feet in obvious confusion, wondering just how that happened. She turned towards Bruce, only to find a smug Damian standing next to him.

“Cassandra and I were trained by the League of Shadows since birth,” Damian answered. “There, it was either kill your opponent first or be killed.”

“… What?” Ruby asked, horrified by Damian’s admission. She then looked toward Bruce, who sighed and nodded his head.

“Damian, I told you that your and Cassandra’s training was the exception, not the rule,” Stephanie chastised. “And why do you sound so smug about it?”

“What, I can’t be proud of surviving years of absolute hell?” Damian shot back. “I know how bad their methods are, and I wouldn’t repeat them on anyone, but they still turned me and Cassandra into highly effective fighters. You can’t deny the results.”

“Can’t deny they turned you into a little shit, too,” Jason muttered.

“What was that, Todd?!”

“You heard me.”

Damian growled, only for Bruce to place a hand on Damian’s shoulder. This placated the young boy, who grumbled and crossed his arms.

“Although he could have worded it better,” Bruce began, “Damian is right. Both he and Cassandra received their training from the League of Shadows during their childhood.”

“Aren’t those guys eco-terrorists?” Yang asked, and Bruce nodded.

“They are,” Damian answered with a frown. “In fact, Ra’s al Ghul is my grandfather.”

“Your _grandfather_?” Weiss asked, clearly surprised. She then looked closer at Damian, seeing a hit of Asian and Middle-Eastern features in his appearance, then looked back at Bruce. “Who was the mother?”

Bruce suddenly looked slightly uncomfortable, looking slightly to the side. “His mother is Talia al Ghul, Ra’s’ daughter. She and I had a…romantic liaison at one time.”

Yang narrowed her eyes at how he worded that. Alarm bells were ringing in her head, along with a disgusted pit forming in her stomach. She couldn’t help but note the conflicted look on his face, one that she saw before on her dad regarding her mother. Given how Damian was now with Bruce while Talia was nowhere to be seen…

Suddenly, Yang didn’t like this Talia person.

“In any case,” Bruce quickly shifted topics again, “Cassandra was also trained by the League, only hers was far more extensive. Her father was more focused on turning her into the ultimate assassin, and not actually raising her as a proper child. He never taught her to speak nor how to read, only how to fight and read her opponents’ body language, an effort in which he succeeded far too well with.”

“Gods…” Pyrrha muttered in horror as she visualized Cassandra’s childhood. Sure, huntsmen and huntresses often trained since they were young, but even then, they were sure to keep a proper childhood. It didn’t sound like Cassandra had one at all. The Crimson Guardian then looked at Cassandra, who stoically stared back at her and nodded.

“It’s how she was able to beat Ruby,” Damian continued, walking up to them and placing a comforting hand on Cassandra’s shoulder. “Even if her training was monstrous and evil, her ability to read body language is second to none. She saw your movements before you could even think of finishing them and reacted accordingly. Ultimately, you didn’t stand a chance.”

“Which is why she was the perfect sparring partner for you,” Bruce continued. “That’s enough for now from you, Ruby. Go ahead and work on remaking Crescent Rose.”

“Let me help you with that, Ruby,” Jason offered as Ruby made her way out of the training ground.

“Nah, I got it. Gonna make my baby myself,” Ruby insisted, and Jason nodded.

“I can respect that. Still, I have to do some maintenance myself, so I’ll join you.”

Seeing the discussion was over, the rest of the group prepared to turn back towards what they were doing before, only for Bruce to speak up again.

“Jaune, you’re next,” Bruce stated, causing Jaune to suddenly pale. Slowly, the boy turned towards Cassandra, who had an evil look in her eye as though she were a predator spying her next prey. He took a gulp, then walked over to face her.

“… Just so you’re aware, what you’re about to do to me? It isn’t special,” he stated, and Cassandra smirked. Then, all he knew was pain.

* * *

 

Yang grunted as she lifted the weight press with all her strength. Her face had long since turned red, and veins were bulging from her forehead. With a wordless shout, she pushed the weight as high as she could, straining her body to its limits until finally Tim Drake shut the machine off. Yang breathed raggedly as she switched positions, hanging her feet off the side of the machine and sitting upright. Tim, his attention still on the readout screen, tossed her a water bottle, which Yang deftly caught and began to greedily drink.

“Not too fast,” Tim cautioned as Yang stopped herself. With a satisfied gasp, Yang closed the bottle and placed it on the table next to her, then looked at Tim.

“I know,” she said as she rose to her feet, her muscles screaming at her. “How much was that?”

“Twenty-one tons,” Tim answered with an impressed whistle. “New record, too.”

Yang flashed a smile, then groaned as a slight pain shot through her upper back. She gently grasped it, maneuvering herself to sit on a nearby table, then looked back up at Tim.

“Yeah, think I’m done lifting weights today,” she admitted, and Tim nodded back.

“Figured,” he admitted while pulling up a chair to sit next to her. For the next few minutes, the two sat in silence as Yang recovered, feeling her Aura work its magic on her. “You know, have to admit. I’m a little jealous of your Aura.”

“Aw, really?” Yang cooed teasingly. Tim smirked, knowing she wasn’t serious, and he leaned back.

“Yep. I mean, having the power of your soul at your fingertips to heal or strengthen you sounds really useful. Kinda wish I had something like that.”

“Yeah, Aura’s pretty cool,” Yang replied, resting her head on her hands while leaning back. “You know, have to admit. Before I arrived on Earth, never gave much thought to where Aura came from. I just took it for granted. But, now that I’m here where people don’t have it… Really puts things into perspective.”

“Mmhmm,” Tim grunted with a nod. He then looked at Yang, who was watching her team conduct their training. Ruby was still working on Crescent Rose 2.0, as she had been tentatively calling it. Obviously, the name, like her weapon, was still a work in progress. Her sister wouldn’t let her see what, exactly, she had planned for it, however. Whatever it turned out to be, Yang knew it would be overcomplicated and awesome at the same time.

“So,” Tim started, cutting into her thoughts, “Victor told me you started flight lessons?”

“Oh, yeah,” Yang replied, looking back at him.

“Cool. Being able to fly’s a good skill to have,” Tim admitted with a nod. “Luckily, we have a flight simulator. Wanna try it out?”

“Sure!” Yang declared with a smile as she rose to her feet. Tim smiled back as he led her over to the machine in question.

“By the way,” Tim began as he opened the compartment door, “try not to crash it into any buildings.”

“That was only one time!” Yang protested with an embarrassed blush, causing Tim to laugh.

* * *

 

Ruby worked diligently, the tip of her tongue poking out the corner of her mouth. A welding mask was covering her face, protecting her eyes from the welding torch’s light and intense heat. Beside her sat Jason Todd, helping to assemble the right pieces for her weapon.

“Bolt,” Ruby requested, holding out her hand with the palm facing upwards.

“Here,” Jason replied, handing Ruby the piece. Ruby took it and placed it into her weapon, ratcheting it into place and moving on. Jason took the moment to glance over at Ruby’s work, eyeing the schematics and various parts lying about the workbench.

He had to admit, he was impressed. Ruby had clearly taken Crescent Rose’s destruction to heart and designed a heap of upgrades to compensate for it. And now that they had unlimited resources thanks to Bruce’s direct support, she could afford much more advanced materials. The list of upgrades was extensive, mostly small and subtle. Lighter materials, better rifling, and other upgrades along those lines. From what he could see, the primary upgrades were in the blade and construction. Before, Crescent Rose was made from a titanium-steel alloy mix, with Dust fused within during the forging process. Now however, Ruby had constructed the main weapon out of depleted promethium alloyed with titanium and vanadium. It was nearly indestructible.

‘ _Like to see anyone crush that,’_ he thought as he turned his attention to the blade. As he expected, Ruby had replaced it with Nth Metal, having grown fond of its many functionalities. Jason suspected that its anti-magical properties was the prime focus of her attention.

Still, the fact remained that they were only just getting started on reconstructing Crescent Rose. It would be days before it would be completed according to Ruby’s standards, and something told him they couldn’t wait that long. That was why he was focusing his attention on making Ruby a secondary weapon, one that would serve for close-quarters combat: a pistol, similar in design to his own yet with a distinct ‘Ruby’ touch to it.

 “Hey,” Ruby spoke up again, shaking Jason from his thoughts. “Thanks for helping me with this.”

“Don’t mention it,” Jason said, going back to his work. “I’m just happy to have another person in this house who can appreciate guns.”

Ruby nodded, then went back to her work. As she assembled another component, she looked to her side and saw that Pyrrha was now sparring against Cassandra Cain. The young girl was holding her own against the champion, giving Pyrrha a run for her money. Part of Ruby wanted Pyrrha to kick Cassandra’s butt, but she was better than that.

“Gaagh!” she heard Yang grunt from inside the flight simulator. Ruby chuckled, knowing that Yang must have ‘crashed’ again. It happened more times than she liked to admit, but Yang was slowly getting better and better. Ruby was happy for her sister, both at her progress and at her desire to learn new things.

That thought caused her to frown and rub the space below her eyes. Pursing her lips, she thought about where her silver-eyes came from. No one was more surprised than she was at the revelation her eyes had special powers, so when she wasn’t working on training or Crescent Rose 2.0, she was thinking about them. Often, she thought about them while doing her other activities.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Jason suddenly asked, causing Ruby to jump slightly in surprise. The Red Hood chuckled as Ruby blushed in slight embarrassment, then calmed herself and looked around the Batcave. Placing her tools on the workbench, she placed them on her lap and looked towards Jason, who had done the same.

“You’re thinking about your eyes again?” Jason suggested, and Ruby nodded.

“Yeah. I, uh… can’t really help it, you know?” Ruby admitted.

“I can see that. God knows how I’d feel if I suddenly found out I had powers, and I came back from the dead.”

“I know, and… Wait, you _what_?” Ruby asked in surprise.

“I came back from the dead,” Jason answered nonchalantly.

“… _How_?”

“Killed by the Joker, and Ra’s al Ghul threw my body into a Lazarus Pit afterwards which brought me back. Kinda went nuts for a while.”

“You seem awfully calm about that.”

“Look, it happened. No use wallowing in it.” Jason waved his hand around haphazardly, then pointed his index finger at Ruby. “Let’s get back to you.”

Ruby looked at him for a long pause, then sighed. “Fine. It’s just…I have so many questions about them. Why are my eyes like this? How come I only found out about them now? Where were the other silver-eyed warriors, and how come their powers weren’t more well-known? Why isn’t there any knowledge about them outside of legends?”

“Yeah,” Jason grunted, “that seems mighty suspicious to me. You said that Ozpin likely knew, right?”

“He called attention to my eyes the first time we met,” Ruby recalled. “Didn’t think much of it then, and it could’ve just been a reference to the myth, but now…”

“Maybe he knew exactly what he was referring to,” Jason finished, and Ruby nodded. Jason nodded back, then rubbed his chin. “Hmm, obviously he didn’t teach you anything about them if he did know the truth. To me, that implies one of several things. One, he knew about them, but not how they worked.”

“That’s what Weiss figured,” Ruby stated. “Pyrrha also suggested that maybe he did know about them, he just wanted me to learn how to fight without it before teaching me.”

“Smart. Last thing anyone needs is a crutch,” Jason declared, then his expression grew darker. “There’s also a…darker possibility. Not towards him but…something else.”

“What do you mean?” Ruby asked, tilting her head.

“I mean, those eyes were rare for a reason, and I don’t think it’s just because of genetics. That story you guys shared about the Silver-Eyed Warriors told of an emperor wanting their powers for himself. What if that wasn’t just figurative?”

“You mean…someone may have hunted them down?” A pit began to form in Ruby’s stomach, which deepened when Jason slowly nodded.

“It’s a possibility. Either to control them or…eliminate them.”

Narrowing her eyes, Ruby stared into Jason’s. “Do you think Ozpin was doing that?”

“No.” Jason shook his head. “From how you described him, I think it’s more likely he may have been trying to protect  you. Question is, from whom?”

Ruby thought hard about the possibility, but her mind came up blank. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “Criminals, most likely.”

“Probably,” Jason agreed, then turned back to his work. “Still, I think it’s obvious learning how to control your eyes is important. Once we figure out how, of course.”

“Oh, obviously. I mean, I have eye-beams. That’s too cool to be ignored.”

Jason laughed. “True that!”

Ruby smiled, then the two gunsmiths went back to work.

* * *

 

Blake crouched low to the ground on the balls of her feet, staring at the obstacle course before her. Behind her, she could hear her opponent’s faint breathing, feel his warm breath hitting her back. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end.

‘ _Of course, he had one, too,_ ’ Blake grumbled to herself as she shifted from side to side.

“Ready?” Stephanie Brown asked, and Blake nodded. Stephanie then raised her hand, paused, then shot it down as fast as she could. “Go!”

 Blake took off as fast as she could, sprinting down the passageway. She heard her pursuer but didn’t allow herself to glance back. Deciding to get to higher ground, Blake scaled the wooden beams in a series of jumps. At the height of her ascent, she grabbed hold of a horizontal pole and used it to swing her body forward, the momentum carrying her to a higher platform. Blake allowed herself to smirk, only to hear her pursuer yet again.

Frowning, Blake dove the side, using her agility to deftly maneuver herself through a tight space between platforms. Sliding underneath a lowered block, Blake moved with the momentum to shoot back up to her feet, continuing her stride. She saw the exit to the obstacle course, and part of Blake wanted to sprint straight towards it. But she knew her opponent wanted that so that he could catch her off guard.

So, she slid to a halt, creating a shadow clone at the same time that continued its momentum further a fair distance. As she waited, she watched her clone continue forward, wondering where he would strike from. But no attack came, and the shadow-clone dissipated on its own. Furrowing her brow, Blake tentatively continued, keeping her eyes and ears peeled for any sign of movement. When no attack came, she allowed herself to sigh, thinking that she had lost him.

That feeling disappeared when a large shadow leaped down towards her. Without thinking, Blake formed another shadow-clone, intending for it to take the blow in her place while she sprinted away. Instead, to her surprise, her opponent leaped off the shadow-clone like a platform, allowing him to land on Blake’s back and pin her to the ground. Lying on her back, Blake stared up into a snarling maw, its fangs barred towards her, then sighed.

“Alright Ace, you got me,” Blake finally said. At once, the snarling stopped, and Ace got off Blake and stepped back a few paces. The black-furred Great Dane sat down calmly, a far cry from his earlier disposition. Blake eyed him warily, staring into his eyes while Ace did the same. Silence descended over both of them, only broken by a low bark.

“No,” Blake declared with a shake of her head, but Ace was persistent and barked again. “No, I’m not doing it.”

“ _Blake, just do it. He’s not going to stop until you do,_ ” Weiss insisted.

“You’re only saying that because you love him.”

“ _How could you not? Look at that sweet little face! And he’s so well behaved, too! Ace is a perfect gentleman!_ ”

“Urgh,” Blake groaned, rubbing the bridge of her nose. ‘ _Weiss and dogs, I swear…_ ’

Reluctantly, Blake looked back up at Ace the Bat-Hound one last time. To her resignation, Ace had inched himself closer to the Faunus, and so with a sigh she reached out and scratched him behind his ears. She heard his tail thump against the ground while he leaned his head further into her hand. A faint smile stretched across her face, but she quickly forced it away.

“I’m done,” Blake insisted as she rose to her feet and walked over to the exit. “Ren, you’re up.”

“ _I’m already at the starting position,_ ” Ren revealed. Blake nodded, then walked over to the viewing platform while Ace went to join Ren. Weiss momentarily regarded Blake with a nod, then went back to focusing her attention onto Ren and Ace.

“You’re popular with dogs,” Weiss stated with a smirk. “First Zwei, now Krypto and Ace.”

“Don’t remind me,” Blake ordered, half-serious. Weiss only smiled, then turned back to the obstacle course. Stephanie stood on a platform behind Ren, holding Ace by his collar. Once Ren insisted he was ready, Stephanie started the course, allowing Ren a few seconds to gain some space before releasing Ace behind him.

“Yeah, go Renny!” Nora cheered excitedly. Weiss and Blake remained stoic as they watched their friend navigate the obstacle course, Ace chasing after him. From the outside, Blake was able to see how Ace managed to outmaneuver her, and she had to admit it was impressive.

“He is well trained,” she admitted.

“I know!” Weiss cooed with a light squeal, and Blake sighed yet again.

* * *

 

_November 7, 6:00 PM_

_Batcave, Wayne Manor_

_Gotham City_

It had been several days since teams RWBY and JNPR had started their direct training with the Batman and his adopted proteges. It reminded them, somewhat, of training under Glynda Goodwitch during combat class. After spending more time with him, the earlier comparisons they made between the two seemed all the more compelling.

At the present moment, Bruce was having both teams practice martial arts katas on wooden practice dummies, while he himself performed the actions they copied. They had been doing this for several hours, and by now all of them had beads of sweat coursing down their bodies. Parts of them wanted to stop and take a rest, but they refused to submit and kept on going.

“Master Bruce?” Alfred called out as he came out of the elevator. Bruce stopped and turned to face him, motioning for the others to continue what they were doing previously.

“Yes, Alfred?” Bruce asked, and Alfred held out a small slip of paper.

“A letter from Lucius,” Alfred revealed. Bruce took the paper and opened it, silently reading its contents. A frown crossed his face, and he turned to give it back to Alfred.

“Tell him I won’t be able to attend,” Bruce told his longtime butler, but Alfred shook his head.

“This gala is being hosted by Wayne Enterprises. It would be unseemly for Mr. Wayne to not attend,” Alfred stated. “As much as I love you going out at night to beat criminals to a pulp, I’m afraid that tonight might not be the best night for it.”

“What’s going on?” Stephanie asked as she finished performing her latest kata, turning towards Bruce with a curious expression. Bruce groaned, while Alfred shot her a wry smile.

“Master Bruce has a party he has to attend tonight, and he’s pouting about it.”

“Oh, poor baby,” Yang joked, only to straighten herself when Bruce looked at her. Without him even saying a word, Yang sighed and dropped down to begin performing push-ups. Ruby chuckled at her older sister’s predicament, then focused her attention on Bruce. He was insisting to Alfred that he would simply stop by for a few minutes then sneak out, but Alfred was equally insistent that he had to stay in public view the entire night. Ruby wondered whether that was actually true or if Alfred simply wanted him to take the night off. She could understand that sentiment. Bruce had been working himself pretty hard the past couple nights, chasing down leads. On the other hand, she’d never consider being stuck in a fancy party “relaxing”. Maybe she and Batman had that in common?

“Fine,” Bruce finally acquiesced with a reluctant groan, while Alfred smiled victoriously. At this, the teenagers stopped and turned to face the Batman, who was rubbing the back of his head. Sensing how everyone was now watching him, Bruce turned towards them with narrowed eyes. Ruby looked back with a determined expression, telling him all he needed to know.

“Alright, training’s done for the day,” Bruce declared as he walked away. “I want everyone suited up.”

The superheroes nodded, then quickly made their way to the assorted changing rooms scattered around the Batcave. Alfred handed Bruce a neatly pressed black suit and tie, which Bruce took and changed into. Soon enough, all of his proteges and the members of teams RWBY and JNPR were standing before him, all wearing their super suits. He noted that Jaune didn’t have Crocea Mors on him, instead using a simple replacement sword Damian had loaned to him.

“So,” Yang began, “what’s the plan?”

Bruce said nothing as he walked over to the Batcomputer, booting it up and selecting a single folder.

“Ever since Scarecrow’s attack, Gotham’s crime rate has increased exponentially,” he revealed, showing scenes of various crimes that had taken place in the city. “That was to be expected, as is normally the case after a large supervillain attack. Batgirl, Red Hood, Red Robin, Spoiler and I have been working to contain it while also investigating the source of Scarecrow’s attack. We’ve narrowed down our leads.”

“And they are?” Pyrrha asked, sitting down on a chair while resting her head on her hand. Batman brought up one file from within the folder, revealing the mugshot of a crazed man with short red hair.

“Edward Nygma, also known as the Riddler,” Bruce revealed. “Former GCPD forensic scientist with an ego to match his intelligence. Obsessed with riddles and performing convoluted plans utilizing them to prove his superiority over others.”

“What’s the Riddler have to do with Scarecrow?” Red Hood asked.

“Enigma, Nygma’s personally designed operating system,” Bruce answered. “Oracle found that it formed the core of the bombs’ trigger mechanisms, as well as their internal communications. The fact that Crane had it is suspect.”

“You think he sold it to them?” Weiss suggested, and Bruce nodded.

“It seems likely.” Bruce then turned towards Damian, who was sitting next to Ruby and Weiss. “Damian, I want you, Ruby, and Weiss to investigate him. Do not confront unless you absolutely need to.”

“On it,” Damian stated, while Ruby saluted.

“You can count on us!” she cheerfully exclaimed, causing both Weiss and Damian to roll their eyes. Bruce then turned his attention back towards the Batcomputer, opening up the next file.

“Next, we have the issue of where and how Crane obtained his weapons,” Bruce continued, showing pictures of the weapons in question. “All were highly advanced LexCorp weaponry, similar to the ones smuggled into Jump City.”

“Lex?” Jaune suggested, but to his surprise Bruce shook his head.

“Not likely, at least not in comparison to him,” Bruce countered, showing a picture of a short, portly man with an abnormally long nose. A monocle was over his right eye, and a black top hat crowned his balding head. “After all, Gotham is the Penguin’s primary base of operations. No one sells arms in this city without him knowing about it, legal or otherwise.”

“Blake and I can handle this guy,” Yang offered, leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms behind her head. “I have experience dealing with people like him.”

“Be that as it may,” Bruce said, slightly unconvinced, “I’ll be having Batwoman join you. While you’re there, stay on your guard. Although Cobblepot likes to masquerade the Iceberg Lounge as a high-class establishment, it’s truly the front of his entire operation. Criminals from all over the country head there to purchase arms or simply network.”

“So, sneak in and not go all out. Got it.” Yang flashed a confident smile and a thumbs up. Bruce nodded back, knowing that Blake would keep her partner in-line, then moved on to the next topic.

“After the attack,” Bruce started, bringing up pictures of arrested criminals that night, “the GCPD was able to catch most of the convicts working with Scarecrow that night. Most of them were former inmates at Blackgate Penitentiary, all with extensive criminal records. Eventually, after hours of background checks and interrogations, it was found that many were members of Roman Silonis’ gang.”

“Let me guess: Skull Face?” Nora suggested when Bruce pulled up an image of a white-suited gangster with a black skull-shaped mask covering his head.

“Nope. Black Mask,” Red Hood clarified with a snarl. “One of the most powerful crime lords in Gotham City. But why would he loan men out to Scarecrow? He hates the guy.”

“That’s what you and Cassandra are going to find out,” Bruce replied. Pyrrha then politely raised her hand, only lowering it when Bruce brought his attention towards her.

“Can Jaune and I join them?” she asked. Bruce thought it over for a moment, then nodded.

“You might want to disguise yourselves going in,” Bruce suggested. “As with the others, this is an investigation, not a gang bust. I don’t want you fighting if you don’t have to.”

Jason groused wordlessly, scratching his hand. Bruce lightly glared at his second adopted son, then sighed and moved to the final file.

“Finally, we have the question regarding the bombs themselves,” Bruce revealed. “They were homemade, crude yet sophisticated at the same time. They contained an aerolizing chamber manufactured by GothCorp, which converted the pool of liquid Fear Gas into its potent gaseous state. What we need to find out is how they managed to get their hands on them, theft or otherwise.”

“Wouldn’t be the first time Boyle’s company conducted illegal activities,” Stephanie muttered under her breath.

“Yeah, but he’s rotting in jail,” Tim countered. “It’s just as likely it was a legitimate theft, and they just haven’t announced it because of the public relations disaster that would follow.”

“Whatever the case, I would like you two to investigate. Nora, Ren, you join them as well.”

“Of course,” Ren nodded, while Nora beamed.

“Aye-aye!” she joyfully declared. Stephanie and Tim’s eyes slightly widened at the news, looking at the rest of Nora’s teammates. They all gave sympathetic looks, telling them they were in for a long night. Jaune even put his hand on Tim’s shoulder, causing Tim’s mind to wonder what exactly he was in for.

“Everyone understand their assignments?” Bruce asked one last time. When everyone nodded affirmatively, Bruce nodded back. “Oracle will be overseeing everyone as mission control. Now, if you’ll excuse me.”

At that, Bruce turned and walked away, leaving everyone else behind while he ascended in the elevator. The superheroes watched him go, then turned to face each other.

“Something tells me,” Weiss started, “that this is going to end up being a long night.”

“Probably,” Ruby agreed with her partner, “but isn’t that what makes it fun?”

At Ruby’s smile, Weiss rolled her eyes and playfully punched Ruby’s shoulder. Yang and Stephanie, however, couldn’t help but note that Damian was looking at the two girls with a curious expression. It only lasted for a moment before being replaced by his trademark annoyed disposition, but it was enough to get their minds working. Still, they had more important things to worry about for the moment.

* * *

 

As Bruce Wayne’s car drove away from Wayne Manor, a secret passage opened from behind a waterfall. From it, several smaller vehicles, including motorcycles and small cars, drove out towards Gotham City. At first, they traveled as a pack, before one by one they split into smaller groups. They could all sense it in the air, that Weiss’ statement would be proven correct.

That this would, indeed, be a very long night.

[~][~]


	28. Riddle Me This

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby, Weiss, and Damian have to solve a series of increasingly difficult puzzles in order to apprehend the Riddler.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 20: Riddle Me This **

[~][~]

Yellow street lights casted a dull hue over Gotham City, the light of the full moon partially obscured by clouds and drawing shadows along the buildings. The streets themselves were empty and devoid of life, with the odd exception of civilians coming home from a late-night shift. They had this nervous disposition, looking over their shoulder to see if anyone, or anything, was following them. For most, nothing happened, much to their relief, but others weren’t so lucky.

‘ _God, I can’t wait to get home…_ ’ a woman thought to herself as she continued her trek home. The diner had a busy night, preventing her from leaving until well after midnight. ‘ _At least I got tipped a lot. Should be enough for rent this month._ ’

A yawn broke out of her mouth, which she batted away with her hand. She was so tired, almost to the point of exhaustion, and she wanted nothing more than to get home to her family as soon as possible. As she passed an alleyway however, one that she knew was a straight shot to her home, she refused to even look at it. As tired as she was, going in there in the middle of the night was practically an invitation to be robbed, or worse. And that was without considering the several hundred dollars’ worth of tips currently held in her purse.

She heard a clang coming from behind, causing the woman to stop and sharply spin around to face the source. Outside of a single rolling tin can, there was no one to be seen. Still, her eyes remained focused on the alleyway, and heartbeat quickened. Slowly, she turned around and kept walking, now at a brisker pace. Her eyes darted from side to side, trying to spot any potential danger as the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. Then, she heard another sound, this time much closer. The woman turned around yet again, opening up her bag and grabbing hold of a small bottle of pepper spray. Once again, she saw no one, but now she was no longer convinced she was alone.

“… Whoever you are…” she began, her body shaking, “I’m warning you… Stay back.”

No response was heard. The silence was broken only by a faint ruffle of fabric, which she assumed came from the clothesline hanging in between one of the alleys. Still, she stared hard into the alley, trying to discern any shapes. For a brief moment, she thought she saw the silhouette of a man, but just as soon as it appeared, it was gone. Startled, she pulled out her phone and turned on its flashlight, shining it into the alley, then sighed in relief as she saw it was only a metal trashcan. She put away her phone and released her grip on her pepper spray, then turned around.

Only to find herself face to face with a large, hulking man.

“Hello there,” he greeted her, looking down at her with intimidating eyes. He was taller than her, much taller, not to mention physically built. He had a short mop of dark brown hair, rough around the edges but not reaching his upper ears. A thick, slightly unkempt beard covered his face, and a few of his teeth were missing. If the woman was nervous before, she was terrified now, and the man seemed to recognize that.

“Hey, no need to be scared,” he insisted in a faux comforting tone. “I’m not going to hurt you. Just wanted to know why a young girl like yourself was wandering around Gotham City at night all by herself.”

The woman said nothing, slowly backing away while keeping her attention squarely focused on the man in front of her. He had a wry grin on his face, one that held a menacing intention behind a helpful façade. Then he took a step forward, and the woman pulled out her vial of pepper spray.

“Stay back, now,” she ordered. The man did as instructed, chuckling in slight amusement while keeping his hands up

“Okay, okay. Take it easy, lady,” he said.

“Yeah, he was only asking a question,” another, shriller voice responded from right behind her. With a start, the woman turned around to see a smaller, skinnier man staring at her. His blond hair was long and wild, the top of his head slightly thinned. His eyes were blood shot, and patches of his long-sleeved shirt were torn around the elbows, exposing a few freshly healed track marks. The woman moved to aim her pepper spray at the newcomer, only for the first man to harshly grab her wrist and rip the vial away from her. He threw it to the side, where it clattered against the pavement, while the second man grabbed her with surprising strength and forced her into the alleyway. She struggled against his grip, trying to break free, only to stop when the first man brandished a knife.

“See, that’s better,” he  stated with another, far more wicked smile, then held up his other hand. He gestured with it. “Now, hand over the purse.”

Her heartbeat was pounding in her ears, and she didn’t move a muscle. She was completely terrified, as though she was a deer in headlights. The man was growing more impatient, then thrust his hand into her purse and yanked it away violently. She screamed frightfully, but the addict holding her kept her in place while his partner fished through her purse and grabbing her wallet.

“Ooh-hoohoo!” he laughed victoriously, flashing the several hundred dollars around in the air. “We hit the jackpot!”

The addict laughed alongside his partner, letting the woman go. She fell to the ground with a thud, and she immediately began to scramble away on her back. When the two men shot their attentions towards her, however, she stopped.

“So,” the addict began, “what do we do with her?”

The first man thought for a moment, trying to think on what exactly to do, and failed to notice a shape descend from the rooftop behind them. The woman, however, did, and despite her reasoning telling her everything would be alright, fear still coursed through her body.

“Well, for starters,” a young girl replied, catching the two men off guard, “you can give her back her money.”

They spun around sharply, both men pulling out knives to face the voice’s owner. It was no one they recognized, but the red and black outfit, hood, and half-cowl told them she was a hero. A young one at that, a teenager at the very most.

“Ah, great,” the first man grumbled, “another wannabe superhero.”

“Hey! I’m not a wannabe! I am a hero!” The girl paused, then sheepishly looked to the side. “Well, a hero in training, but still!”

The two men looked at each other, then back at the young girl. “Right… Now, how about you just run along, little girl? I really don’t want to be the guy who beats up children.”

“Yeah, so scram!” the addict yelled out, but the girl shook her head.

“Not gonna happen,” she insisted. “So, how about you give back the money you stole, and you don’t have to say you got beaten up by a little girl?”

The first man couldn’t help but laugh at the wannabe’s spunk, while the addict sputtered in anger.

“Don’t make me use this, little girl!” he threated, but to his shock the girl waved him off.

“Don’t make me use this,” she replied, brandishing a knife of her own, one that was bulkier yet with a smaller blade than either of theirs. They looked at it in confusion, then the exposed part of the girl’s face blushed. “Gah, not that! I didn’t mean to...! Uh, this is so embarrassing…!”

The two robbers stared at the young hero as she fiddled with the knife, wondering what to do. The girl seemed to notice this and flashed a sheepish smile at them.

“Sorry, just got it this morning. Still not exactly used to it,” she admitted.

“…How can you not be used to a – Never mind,” the larger man cut himself off. “Look kid, stop playing with knives before you get yourself hurt.”

“Oh, it’s not just a knife,” she replied, still twiddling with her weapon. “It’s also a highly customized, interchangeable ammunition semi-automatic firing system!”

“A _what_?” the addict asked, completely confused, but the girl merely smiled and held the knife forward.

“It’s also a gun,” she clarified, then pressed a button on its side. To their shock, the knife flipped over, internal components shifting and extending outward. Before their very eyes, the knife transformed into a block-shaped gun, two barrels extending forward. The first was smaller, while the second was much wider and thicker.

“Oh, shi-!” they both yelled just as the girl fired two shots into each of them. Electricity coursed through their bodies as the rounds hit their chests, sending them spasming to the ground. Happily, the girl holstered her weapon and skipped over, whistling a jaunty tune as she grabbed the stolen money from the large man’s pocket. She then skipped away, then stopped and turned around.

“Oh yeah, one more thing,” she said as she aimed her pistol yet again, this time loading a cannister into the under barrel. She fired it, the cannister exploding into a weighted net that enveloped both men just as the electricity wore off. They tried to escape but found that the net wouldn’t budge.

“Why you little-!” the robbers yelled, but the girl was already away, flying through the air in a trail of rose petals. They watched her disappear into the night, and at the same time, heard police sirens racing towards them.

“… Well, crap.”

* * *

 

“Are you okay, miss?” Weiss asked the clearly shaken woman as they sat on the steps leading to her town home. She and Robin had been looking her over as soon as they managed to get her away, and luckily found no injuries on her. The robbers must have only been interested in her money.

“I… I’m fine,” the woman insisted. “Thank… Thank you.”

“It’s no problem at all,” Weiss replied, offering a comforting smile while Robin checked on a small scrape on her knee.

“You got this when you fell?” he asked, and the woman nodded. Nodding back, he opened a pouch on his utility belt and pulled out a can of disinfectant spray. Robin then gingerly held the woman’s leg up and aimed the can at the injury.

“This will sting,” he announced. The woman nodded in understanding, then hissed as the spray contacted her skin.

“I’m back!” Ruby announced as she glided in. When she landed, a misstep almost caused her to wipe out, but a quick flurry of steps kept her balance. “Heh…nailed it…”

“Sure…” Weiss smiled and rolled her eyes. Damian shook his head, while Ruby pouted.

“Anyway!” Ruby started, her pitch slightly higher as she turned towards the robbed woman. “I got your money back.”

“Oh, thank you!” the woman said as Ruby handed the wad of cash over. “Thank you! You don’t know what this means to me and my family!”

“It’s no problem at all, miss. Just doing our jobs,” Ruby insisted. “Do you need any more help?”

“I…no, I should be good,” the woman responded as Weiss helped her to her feet. She then turned to walk into her home, then stopped at the door. “Before you go, what do I call you two?”

“I’m the Red Reaper, and this is my partner, Ivory Mage,” Ruby responded, and turned to face Robin. “You already know… Did he already leave?”

Weiss and the woman scanned the area, trying to find where Robin had gone. True to Ruby’s observation, he was nowhere to be seen, and the Red Reaper sighed.

“Uggh, that is so rude,” Weiss complained, then turned to face the woman. “Still, we have a job to do. Head on back inside.”

“I will. And once again, thank you both. Thank Robin for me, too,” she requested, and Weiss nodded. The woman then walked back inside, and once they heard the door lock behind them, both huntresses zipped away on their grappling hooks to a nearby roof. Robin was waiting for them up there and looked slightly irritated, which by itself wasn’t anything new.

“You took your sweet time,” he complained, and Weiss narrowed her eyes at him.

“And you were incredibly rude just leaving her there,” Weiss insisted, but Robin didn’t look phased by her comment.

“She was safe and sound at her home, and there was no need for us to linger when we have more important matters to attend to,” he reminded the former heiress. “In case you’ve forgotten.”

“I haven’t forgotten anything, although you’ve seemed to have forgotten basic manners!” Weiss and Robin growled at each other, but before their argument could continue, Ruby stepped between them and extended her arms to their chests.

“Guys, guys! We’re friends here, okay!” Ruby said, trying to calm them down. Weiss and Robin glared at each other for a few more moments, then they both sighed and took calming breaths. After a few more moments, both heroes stepped back. Ruby smiled then removed her hands from her friends.

“There, see? Isn’t that better?” she asked. Weiss and Robin looked at each other for a moment, then huffed and looked away. Ruby sighed exasperatingly, then decided to refocus on the task at hand. “Let’s refocus. Robin, you have more experience dealing with the Riddler. Anything we can expect?”

Robin looked at Ruby for a moment, then nodded. “A few things. One, Riddler’s a complete egomaniac. He’s obsessed with proving himself the intellectual superior over everyone else.”

“And he does this by using riddles?” Weiss finished, and Robin nodded.

“He has no powers of his own, and he usually goes down after a few punches. As crazy as he is, however, he’s still a threat thanks to his intellect. Nygma’s a legitimate genius, and you cannot underestimate him.”

“How can we beat him?” Ruby asked as she inspected her pistol, appreciating its design.

“Solve his riddles,” Damian answered plainly. “The more we solve, the more riled up he gets. After a certain point, he starts making mistakes, but it might take some time to reach that point. So we might be playing his game for a while.”

“Perfect,” Weiss groaned. “Although, with a name like ‘the Riddler’, I should have expected this.”

“Oh, come on!” Ruby insisted with a smile. “Try to take a look at the bright side! It could be fun! Or, as fun as it can be dealing with a supervillain… Unless he gets too bad, in which case it stops being fun…”

Ruby continued to mumble to herself, then noticed Weiss’ and Damian’s stares. Coughing, Ruby sheepishly smiled and pointed to a nearby building.

“Onward!” she ordered as she prepared to zip away, only to stop and turn to Robin. “Mind leading the way? You know the city better than me.”

Robin looked at Ruby with a plain expression, then nodded. “Oracle picked up a few traces of code a few blocks away. We can start there,” he said, then pulled out his grapple gun and fired a line into a nearby rooftop. He zipped away, leaving Ruby and Weiss behind, who pulled out grapple guns of their own.

“Hmm, would’ve thought you’d integrate the grappling hook into your new gun,” Weiss noted, and Ruby shrugged.

“I will, eventually, but there wasn’t enough time to fully integrate it,” she revealed. “Red Hood and I only finished it this morning.”

“Remind me. Who designed it, him or you?”

“Me, obviously.” Ruby looked almost offended by Weiss’ question, and her partner held up a hand placatingly. The Red Reaper nodded, then both she and the Ivory Mage zipped away on their lines towards Robin’s location. When they landed, the trio continued on, leaping over rooftops towards their objective.

“By the way,” Weiss continued, “have you thought of a name for it, yet?”

“Yes, actually,” Ruby answered with a smile. “I’m thinking of calling it ‘Rose Thorn.’”

“It fits,” Robin admitted, briefly looking back towards Ruby. When she smiled back at him, he quickly turned his attention back to what was ahead of him, almost redoubling his efforts. Ruby thought nothing of it, but Weiss couldn’t help but find the reaction odd. Still, with more important matters to attend to, she moved the thought out of her mind, figuring it wasn’t all that important.

* * *

 

“ _Guardian and I are staking out Black Mask,_ ’ Jaune detailed over the radio as Ruby crouched on her perch, looking over the city block with her mask’s built in binoculars. “ _There hasn’t been an opening yet, but we have some ideas._ ”

“Got it. Try not to do something stupid, alright?” Ruby joked, and she could hear Jaune groan.

“ _I know, I know._ ” Jaune paused, then spoke again. “ _Dragon, how are things on your end?_ ”

“ _We just entered the Lounge now,_ ” Yang replied, and Ruby could hear the smirk on her sister’s face. “ _Geez, I know B-man said this place was considered high class, but I’ve never seen so many stuffed up rich people in one place before. Ivory, does this remind you of anything?_ ”

“Grrgh,” Weiss growled, and Yang laughed.

“ _Heh-heh. Seriously though, we’ll let you guys know once we get more information. Just gotta figure out how to get the Penguin to squawk.”_

“I’m sure you’ll figure something out,” Ruby said, nodding to herself. “Lotus, how are things on your end?”

“ _Going well, nothing to report yet_ ,” Ren replied. “ _We’re currently trying to figure out a way inside. Shouldn’t be too long._ ”

“Got it.” Ruby paused, then looked over to Robin and saw that he was waving her over. “Have to go. We got a lead.”

She received a chorus of replies from her friends and teammates, then shut off her comms and jumped down towards Robin. Ruby extended out her cape to slow her descent, landing softly on the roof right next to Robin and Weiss. Crouching down, she looked towards Robin, who himself was holding a small handle projecting a light into his eyes. He then pressed a button on the side, and both Ruby’s and Weiss’ HUDs had a radio frequency projected onto them.

“What’s this?” Ruby asked.

“This,” Robin started, “is a radio frequency Riddler often uses for his little games. Connects to the various machines and computers he has set up all around the city, not to mention any emplaced cameras. The fact that we’re picking this up means something of his is nearby.”

“What are we waiting for, then?”

To Ruby’s surprise, Weiss shook her head. “The fact that we’re receiving this signal at all is suspicious. It implies that either we’ve stumbled across an operation of his, or that he was expecting us. I don’t know which is worse.”

“Oh,” Ruby whispered. She hadn’t thought of that, but now the signal did seem suspicious, if not an outright trap. The looks on her partners’ faces told her they felt the same, and now they were at an impasse towards what to do next.

“The way I see it,” Weiss began, “we don’t have much of a choice but to find it.”

A heavy silence fell over the trio as they pondered Weiss’ words. Slowly, they nodded in agreement.

“You know this is a trap, right?” Robin stated, Ruby nodded back.

“Yes. Now we just have to spring it,” Ruby declared, standing fully upright. “The riddle is around here somewhere. We find it, we’re one step closer to finding the Riddler.”

Robin and Weiss nodded at Ruby’s declaration, and they too stood upright. They took one final look at each other, then split apart. Each fanned out in different directions, wanting to search as much ground as possible. Weiss headed north, aiming towards a series of warehouses, while Damian went south towards some apartment complexes. Ruby, meanwhile, ascended a large spire, giving her a bird’s eye view of the cityscape below.

“Where are you…?” Ruby asked herself as she scanned the city, looking for any sign of a riddle. There was nothing obvious to the Red Reaper, and she sighed in annoyance. Looking around, she saw another spire, this one higher up, and so she grappled towards it. Now with a higher vantage point, she again searched her surroundings, but nothing obvious stood out.

“Darn it…” she grumbled, and prepared to zip away, only to pause as something irregular caught her eye. Scattered along the rooftops, she saw a series of shacks that looked out of place from the surrounding architecture. She had only been in Gotham for a short time, but even she noticed the very distinct look of the city. If she had to describe it, Gotham had a modernized Gothic theme, but even that wasn’t quite accurate. These shacks, in contrast, did not match the theme. Instead, they looked hastily constructed with haphazard attempts to blend into the scenery yet distinct enough to draw attention should one be looking at it more closely.

Narrowing her eyes, Ruby carefully scaled the spire she was hanging off of, careful to keep her eyes on the structures. The higher she climbed, the more she noticed a pattern appear. The shacks on the rooftops, when seen together, formed a curved shape, and slowly Ruby felt the hint of a smile cross her face. Finally, she was getting somewhere.

But she needed to be higher. Looking around, Ruby tried to find another perch, one that was higher up, to get a better vantage point, but to her dismay found none. The Red Reaper pondered her next move, trying to decide how to see the entire picture. She wondered if Weiss could possibly create a platform for her to stand on, but before she could even ask her partner for her assistance, an idea popped into Ruby’s head. She looked up into the night, then to her glider cape.

‘ _Can I?_ ’ she wondered. After a moment, she nodded to herself. Ruby then repositioned, angling her body against the spire and using its top as a sight. She breathed in and out three times, psyching herself up, then launched herself forward with her Semblance. Her body dissipated into a cloud of red rose petals, ascending high in the air. Ruby kept her form as long as she could, until finally she could no longer hold it and thus returned to normal. When she did, she spun around and opened her cape, angling herself so that she slowly descended.

“Darn it…” Ruby cursed, seeing how she still wasn’t high enough. The shape was clearer now, but still wasn’t completed. As Ruby continued to slowly descend, she decided to boost herself one more time. Thanks to her cape, Ruby found herself able to do so, although the secondary boost wasn’t as high as the first. Still, as she slowly descended through the air, Ruby found what she wanted.

From high above Gotham City, Ruby could see the shacks make a familiar shape. Dozens of them lined up into a perfect question mark, one that could only be seen from her position.

“Found it,” Ruby announced to Weiss and Damian, taking a picture with her cowl. She smiled to herself as she glided down to the nearest rooftop, only for her radio to sparkle to life.

“ _Finally! Took you long enough!_ ” a shrill, male voice said, one that she didn’t recognize. Surprised, Ruby wavered and almost crashed, but was able to reorient herself in time and made a stumbling landing. She dusted herself off, then frowned.

“Who is this?” Ruby asked, holding her fingers to her ear.

The man seemed to chuckle. “ _I’m not surprised you can’t figure it out, given how long it took you and your friends to solve a puzzle that simple. A child could have done it. Oh wait, you are a child, aren’t you?_ ”

At once, Ruby groaned, realizing just who the man was. “You must be the Riddler.”

“ _She can be taught! Bravo, bravo I say!_ ” The man clapped, and Ruby’s face held an unimpressed look.

“Listen, we can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Ruby began, but Riddler cut her off.

“ _Oh, you must be new at this to start off with that tired song-and-dance routine. It’s so basic, and a bit sad,_ ” Riddler mocked her. Ruby ground her teeth in frustration, the man quickly riling up her nerves, but he continued. “ _Listen, Red Reaper or whatever you call yourself. Just turn back and grab the Batman. It’s the only way you and your little friends will be able to get to me. The riddles I have set up around Gotham City are perfectly designed to best even him, so for you, it’d be impossible._ ”

“You’ve been expecting us,” Ruby stated, and the Riddler laughed.

“ _Of course, I have! Why wouldn’t I? After that, it was child’s play to plan my next move._ ”

The Riddler’s declarations, although mocking, told Ruby enough. Nygma was definitely involved in Scarecrow’s attack, that much was certain. But she needed to know more, and given what she knew of the man, playing his game would be the only way to beat him.

“You know,” Ruby began, “you say that solving that riddle was hard for me? Actually, I found it pretty easy once I figured out what was going on. It was simple, and kind of uninspired.”

“ _What?_ ” Riddler shot back, sounding offended.

“Yeah. I mean, a series of shacks assembled like a question mark? Where’s the challenge in that? You just had to get high enough. How about something with more…oomph?”

“ _Grrgh,_ ” the Riddler growled. “ _Fine, you want to play that game? Sure, I’ll show you. Just so that I can rub your nose in your inevitable defeat by my superiority. Riddle me this, little Red Reaper: What is the beginning of eternity, the end of time and space, the beginning of every end and the end of every race?_ ”

“Hmm,” Ruby hummed to herself, thinking over the riddle. A long pause descended between the two, and she could imagine the satisfaction on Riddler’s face.

“ _There’s no shame in giving up,_ ” he mockingly told her, but Ruby continued to ponder. Finally, she smiled and held her fingers up to her ear once more.

“The letter ‘e’,” she answered. There was a pause, then the Riddler scoffed.

“ _Grrh, you got lucky there. That was an easy one,_ ” he replied, and Ruby smiled. She was getting to him, and that was good in her eyes.

“Now that I’ve proven I’m up to it, how’s about you let me know where the next riddle is?”

Rather than answer, the Riddler laughed. “ _Ohoho! You think I’d just_ tell _you? Little girl, that isn’t the game. You have to find my riddles, otherwise what’s the point? If you can’t even figure out where my riddles are, then what hope do you have in finding me?_ ”

With that, the Riddler cut off, and Ruby sighed. Then, she pressed her fingers to her ear again, and spoke. “Guys, I solved the first riddle.”

“ _We heard,_ ” Damian replied, a slight growl in his voice. “ _I told you he was an egotistical maniac._ ”

“ _Egotistical is an understatement,_ ” Weiss countered. “ _Sounded like he was in love with himself. Still, he did confirm that he was, at the very least, an accomplice in Scarecrow’s attack. I’m not comfortable letting a man like that run around free._ ”

“ _On that, you and I can agree._ ”

“Same here,” Ruby said. “We need to find the rest of those riddles. Oracle, any suggestions?”

“ _Yes, actually,_ ” Oracle replied, the faint tapping of keyboard presses sounding in the background. “ _As soon as Damian caught the first signal, I’ve been running a tracking software through it. I’ve managed to isolate several key hotspots around Gotham City, around ten in total._ ”

“ _We have to do ten of these things?_ ” Weiss asked, then groaned.

“ _Yes, unfortunately._ ”

“ _Great…_ ”

“ _Oracle, can you upload the trackers to our masks?_ ” Robin asked.

“ _Already sent._ ” True to Oracle’s word, a faint beep came from Ruby’s cowl as the software was uploaded remotely. A signal bar then appeared on the corner of her HUD, and Ruby nodded.

“Alright, let’s go solve some riddles,” Ruby announced as she zipped up into the air, gliding towards the closest signal.

* * *

 

Weiss kept a close eye on the signal tracker as she made her way across the Gotham skyline. Coming to a wide street, she refused to break her stride and created a series of platforms to leap across. The signal grew stronger, and the Ivory Mage allowed herself to nod.

‘ _The sooner we get this over with, the better,_ ’ she thought, continuing her search. Annoyance had been slowly building up in her, having been searching for the Riddler’s next game for almost half an hour. When he had said his riddles were scattered throughout Gotham City, he had meant it. There were several times where Weiss got lost among the dark alleyways and twisting rooftops, but after a while she had managed to gain a solid grasp of her destination. At the very least, she had managed to stop a few crimes along the way, mostly petty theft and armed robbery.

The trek also allowed her to get a better view of Gotham itself. It was a far cry from the vibrant Jump City or the classical city of Vale. Instead, if she had to describe the city in just one word, she would have to say it was dirty. In every sense of the word. There was a deep, grungy smell that covered everything, a filth that permeated every building and every soul. A sense of hopelessness was tangible across the city, that people had given up on their lot in life getting any better. It was sad, more than anything else, and she wondered why the Batman would devote so much time to helping a city anyone else would have written off as a lost cause.

But at the same time, there was something she couldn’t describe hidden underneath the filth covering Gotham. Something that, should it be exposed, would shine bright and lift everyone’s spirits. Perhaps that was why he continued his crusade? Regardless of his reasonings, Weiss continued to respect the man, even if she was finding him to be a tad overbearing and stern. Not to mention paranoid.

At least she could tell he cared. That was more than she could say about her own father.

Before Weiss could ruminate further, the signal tracker went wild. The Ivory Mage stopped, standing still on a hover platform high above a dark Gotham street. She turned around in a circle, scanning everything in sight to try and find the Riddler’s puzzle. Her eyes revealed nothing, and so Weiss frowned and pressed a button on the side of her mask. At once, a thin blue shimmer crossed her HUD, revealing the city’s utility lines as it passed. She could see everything, from electrical wirings to gas lines and water mains. A perfect tool for trying to find anything out of place, or something put in place by a delusional maniac.

“There you are…” she mumbled as she spotted an array of electronics assembled inside an abandoned warehouse. Weiss created a series of platforms to make her way to a cracked window, and once she reached it used Myrtenaster’s blade to gently force the window open. She slid it up and crawled inside, landing on a catwalk with a loud clang. She froze, hoping there wasn’t anyone around who heard that, but after a few moments found she was only joined by a few rats. With her weapon still clutched tightly, Weiss made her way towards the electronics that had caught her attention, her HUD illuminating the otherwise pitch black interior.

“GAGH!” she shrieked in pain as the lights inside the warehouse suddenly turned on, bathing the interior in a dull yellow. Weiss’ HUD shut off automatically, but instinctually she held her hands close to her eyes to try and rub out the spots. After a few moments, the pain dulled, and she slowly blinked them open, only to find herself staring at the fully activated Riddler puzzle before her.

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me,” she groaned as she made out what could only be described as a maze of square tubes reaching up one of the walls. There was a single metal hamster ball at one end, and at the very top of the maze sat an opening near one of the catwalks.

“ _So, you finally found the puzzle?_ ” Riddler taunted her as a screen flickered to life. For the first time, Weiss saw the Riddler’s current appearance, and she wasn’t impressed. The man was dressed gaudily, wearing a bright green overcoat over a purple undershirt. Dark green question marks covered his clothes, and a single upright question mark sat at the front of the villain’s green and purple-rimmed bowler hat. Held in front of him, leaning diagonally across his body, was a dark green cane toped with a golden question mark, and Weiss couldn’t help but groan some more.

“Really went the whole nine-yards with the theme there, didn’t you?” she asked, and the Riddler smiled.

“ _Rich, coming from the girl cosplaying as a magician_ ,” Riddler mocked, then waved his hand and cane around with a flourish. “ _But can you solve this?_ ”

“I can,” Weiss declared, placing her hand on her hip, but the Riddler laughed.

“ _I’d like to see you try!_ ”

The screen shut off, leaving Weiss alone once more. She studied the maze for a moment, then pressed her fingers to her ear.

“Oracle, I found one of Riddler’s puzzles,” she said, keeping her gaze on it at all times.

“ _I see it,_ ” Oracle responded. “ _Yeah, this a typical challenge of his._ ”

“Were you able to get a lock on his signal?”

“ _No, unfortunately. He’s bouncing them around all across the city, and I can’t get a good lock. You’re going to have to keep playing as I try to narrow it down._ ”

“Understood,” Weiss groaned as she shut off her comms. She then refocused on the maze itself, trying to figure out how best to proceed. There were no controls for the hamster ball, at least none that she could see, which begged the question towards how Riddler expected Batman to manipulate it.

“ _Seriously, you might as well give up now,_ ” Riddler taunted through the warehouse’s speakers. Weiss ignored him, and instead brought her fingers up to her chin. She then looked at Myrtenaster, and a thought came to mind.

“Maybe…” she began as she held out her weapon. Using it as a focus, she carefully formed a small repulsion glyph behind the ball and released it. As expected, the ball sprang forward, hitting itself against the next shaft’s wall.

“ _What?! How did you-?!_ ” Riddler began, and Weiss smiled. “ _Grrgh, of course. You and the Red Reaper had to have powers, didn’t you? It was only a matter of time before the Batman branched out. No matter, this is a cerebral test, not one of brute strength, and I doubt you have the intellectual capacity to complete it successfully._ ”

Instead of showing annoyance, Weiss merely laughed, knowing that would rile him up more. She moved around the maze one last time, carefully plotting out the best course. Once she found it, she smiled.

“Please,” she began as she moved towards the starting position. “I can do this in my sleep.”

With that declaration, Weiss generated another glyph to push the ball down the track. At the bottom of a vertical shaft, Weiss formed another glyph, and when the ball made contact, it thrust the ball upwards. Another glyph repelled it sideways into a corridor, preventing it from falling straight down. The warehouse became filled with the sound of metal being flung into metal as Weiss repeated the motions one after another. She’d move the ball with her glyph, catching it against the shafts or with her glyphs if need be. Sometimes she’d allow the ball to descend, other times she’d manipulate it to the next level. Before long, Weiss had maneuvered the ball into the opposite opening, and with one final glyph, pushed the ball outside.

“See?” Weiss stated victoriously, twirling Myrtenaster in her hand before generating a series of platforms as a staircase. With prideful steps, she walked up to the ball to see it had opened automatically, revealing a small trophy of a neon-green question mark. As Weiss picked it up, the Riddler growled.

“ _You got lucky. That one was easy,_ ” Riddler clarified, “ _at least compared to the others. You stand no chance of beating them._ ”

“Watch me,” Weiss taunted, smiling towards where she knew Riddler had some security cameras looking at her. He scoffed one last time, then the line went dead. Smirking to herself, Weiss brought up the signal tracker once again. The current signal she was on was dead, proving she had accomplished it, but she was still picking up a faint signal nearby.

“Well, let’s see if you _can_ give me a challenge, Edward. I’ve been looking for some, but so far, you’ve been disappointing.”

Weiss knew Riddler heard that, and liked to imagine him screaming out with indignation, but he didn’t deign her with a response as she began her trek to the next puzzle.

* * *

 

Robin zoomed through the spacious sewer pathway on his R-Cycle, bobbing and weaving between extending poles, arcs of electricity, and various other traps while also keeping a close eye on a timer in his HUD. He had about sixty seconds left before the current trial ran out, which he knew was plenty of time. When a spout of flame shot towards him, Robin swerved around it, his years of training the only thing that prevented him from wiping out. Still, the course was remarkably easy to the young vigilante.

Speeding along the track, Robin spotted a large gap with a ramp. He angled towards it and throttled his engine, increasing his speed. As he closed the distance, he saw several large sawblades swoop down towards his head. Rather than feel any fear, Robin merely frowned and expertly maneuvered around them, the sawblades passing barely a hair’s width from his helmet. When he finally entered the ramp, a wall of fire erupted before him, but again Robin increased his speed. The R-Cycle sped off the ramp, its speed carrying it through the gap and onto the opposite ledge. Upon landing, he momentarily swerved from left to right, but kept his balance and sped on through.

“ _Robin, this is Red Reaper,_ ” he heard Ruby announce over the radio. “ _Ivory Mage and I have managed to answer more of Riddler’s puzzles and riddles._ ”

“Good,” Robin answered as he swerved up the side of the track, avoiding an erupting concrete wall. “I’m currently doing another track of his.”

“ _How in the blazes did he manage to make this without anyone noticing?_ ” Weiss asked incredulously.

“Meticulous planning, and the fact that he’s setting them up in areas no one goes to,” Robin answered as he looked at his timer again. It read thirty seconds, and with a slight frown he increased his speed as the track angled sharply downward.

“ _You and I both know that’s not even close to fully answering it,_ ” Weiss countered. “ _I mean, where does he get the resources to construct all of this, the time to put it all together, and the money? How much did this stupid maze cost?!_ ”

As Weiss cursed, Robin could hear the banging of metal in the background. Despite himself, he couldn’t help but let out a smirk.

“Having trouble, there?” he asked.

“ _No, I’m – Gods damn it!_ ” Weiss cursed. “ _Who puts a pinball slapper in a maze?!_ ”

“A delusional egocentric with a chip on his shoulder the size of a planet,” Robin answered as he continued to speed down the track.

“ _I figured!_ ”

Robin smiled before leaning forward and increasing his speed. The timer now read ten seconds, and as the track bent upward, he could see the finish line. The clock ticked down, and as Robin sped towards his destination, he knew that despite how fast he was going, it wasn’t fast enough. So, out of desperation, he pressed a button on his handlebars, which injected a nitrous-oxide mixture into his engine, increasing his speed greatly. He felt his body being pushed back from the sudden change in speed, but he kept his grip tight along the handlebars. With a second to spare, Robin passed the finish line, then slammed on the brakes. His tires squealed as they slowed down, and he fully turned his bike to the side as he came to a stop.

“ _No! No, no no!_ ” Riddler shouted angrily over the track’s speakers. “ _How did you do that?! It should’ve been impossible! You’re cheating, aren’t you?! It’s the only way you could possible complete these tracks on time!_ ”

Robin smiled and looked towards a camera. “It’s called skill, Nygma. Something you’ve never been able to account for.”

“ _Why you little-! GAAGH!_ ” Riddler screamed once again, frustration seeping in his voice. It had been building with each victory the trio had over him. At first, the villain was able to maintain his confidence and smug arrogance. He punctuated nearly every message to them with taunts and mockeries, demeaning their intelligence and ability when compared to his own. He even compared them negatively to the Batman, insisting that they bring him along so that he could beat his arch-rival. But, as the night wore on, so did Riddler’s confidence, to the point where now he was nothing more than just a raging wreck. This pleased not only Robin, but also Ruby and Weiss, although the former heiress was getting more and more frustrated as the maze puzzles she had been focusing on got harder and harder.

“ _Ivory, you good?_ ” Ruby asked.

“ _Come on you stupid – Yes! Finally! Bow to my might!_ ” Weiss cheered as she seemingly accomplished the difficult puzzle.

“ _Heheh! I’ll take that as a yes!_ ”

“ _Yes, but—Oh be quiet. And wipe that smile I know you have off your face._ ”

“ _Whatever you say!_ ” Ruby happily said, clearly not ceasing her smile. Robin couldn’t help but chuckle at the two partners’ banter. It was amusing, to say the least, not to mention a change in pace from the normally serious Wayne Manor. He was coming to appreciate it, although he could stand for Ruby to tone herself down just a tad, as she was proving to be somewhat distracting at times.

“ _Oh, by the way, just found the last mural,_ ” Ruby announced. “ _Have to admit, this one was a little tricky. Who would have thought he could have painted small portions onto blimps that had to be arranged in a perfect order?_ ”

“How’d you manage that?” Robin asked, genuinely curious as he made his way out of the sewers.

“ _Oh, that was easy. Once I figured out what was going on, I contacted the pilots and explained the situation to them. They were surprisingly helpful!_ ”

“ _Why am I not surprised you took such a straight forward solution?_ ” Weiss sighed, and Robin could feel Ruby puff up her cheeks.

“ _Hey, it was actually pretty hard! I had to direct them from the ground like an air-traffic controller. On the bright side, I now have a new appreciation towards what they do._ ”

“As you should,” Robin admitted, fully leaving the sewers and reentering the Gotham streets. As he made his way down towards where his HUD said Ruby was located, his tapped a button on his helmet and reconnected to Oracle.

“Oracle, how many are left?”

“ _You got them all,_ ” Oracle announced, tapping away at the keyboard. “ _I’ve managed to isolate the signal they were bouncing off of, but we have a problem._ ”

“ _And that is?_ ” Weiss asked, her position on Robin’s HUD showing that she, too, was making her way towards Ruby’s position.

“ _It’s another riddle,_ ” Oracle answered, and the three heroes let out a simultaneous groan.

“Send it to our HUDs,” Robin ordered, pulling into an alleyway and parked his R-Cycle. He got off the vehicle, then pulled out his grapple gun and shot himself up to the roof, rejoining the Red Reaper.

“ _Sent_ ,” Oracle announced as Ruby happily waved towards him. Off in the distance, he could see a white speck make its way towards them, which he easily recognized as Weiss jumping across the rooftops or creating platforms to cross large streets.

“ _I have to go,_ ” Oracle continued. “ _There’s an ongoing situation at the Iceberg Lounge, and I’ve lost radio contact with Red Robin, Spoiler, Verdant Lotus and Pink Lightning._ ”

“Something happened at GothCorp?” Robin asked, suddenly concerned. The look on Ruby’s face told him she felt the same.

“What’s happening at the Iceberg Lounge?” she asked as Weiss rejoined them.

“ _A fight broke out at both locations, but so far their vitals are holding strong. As such, I’d advise sticking with your current objective. If need be, I’ll send the Batwing to pick you up and drop you off at their locations._ ”

Ruby, Weiss, and Robin looked at each other, then nodded as Ruby pressed her fingers to her ear. “Got it. We’ll let you know once Riddler is appra…appre…is caught.”

Weiss sighed while Oracle laughed. Robin remained silent, his only reaction being a shake of his head. Once Oracle clicked off the radio, a sheepish Ruby refocused herself and brought up the riddle to her HUD. Robin and Weiss echoed her actions. Words scrolled their HUDs, tinted a bright green. Whether that was Oracle’s doing or simply the signal, they did not know, nor did they really care.

“’What is always on its way here, but never arrives?’” Weiss read aloud, then groaned. “Great, another Riddle. Why am I not surprised?”

“Yeah, at this point, it’s to be expected,” Ruby concurred, then began to prance around the rooftop with her finger brought up to her chin. “Hmm, this one’s tricky. Shipping related?”

“No, that’s too obvious,” Weiss said, shaking her head. “He asked me a few riddles, too, and none of them had obvious answers.”

“Fits his MO,” Robin concurred, then hummed to himself. “Always coming, but never arrives...”

The trio thought hard on the rooftop. An indeterminate amount of time passed, which they couldn’t accurately pinpoint. It all seemed to just pass by so quickly. A multitude of potential answers were given, but none seemed to truly fit. Finally, Weiss perked her head up in realization, which both Ruby and Robin noticed.

“I got it,” she announced. “Tomorrow. The answer’s tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow? What do you mean?” Ruby asked, but Robin held up his finger.

“Now, she’s right. If you think about it, tomorrow never truly comes. It’s always everchanging, moving one day ahead of us at all times.”

“Ohh,” Ruby said, nodding. “Now I get it. But, how’s tomorrow supposed to lead us to the Riddler?”

“It’s probably a taunt,” Weiss suggested. “Saying that we’ll never be able to catch him.”

“But it’s just as likely to be a clue towards his location,” Robin pointed out. He wracked his brain, trying to discern what the possible answer could be, while Ruby’s face held a contemplative look. After a few moments, she pressed her fingers to her ears once again.

“Oracle, can you do me a favor and give me everything in Gotham City related to ‘tomorrow’?” she requested, breaking Robin and Weiss from their thoughts.

“ _One moment,_ ” Oracle replied. A few seconds later, a small directory appeared in their HUDs. “ _There you are. A list of every business, street, and transport associated with tomorrow._ ”

“Thank you.” Ruby shut off her comms, then turned to Robin and Weiss. The two were already poring over the details, and Robin nodded towards her.

“Good idea. It’s likely that Nygma’s hiding out in one of these places,” Weiss congratulated her partner, to which Ruby beamed. The trio continued their search, remotely scanning the locations to try and discern where Riddler was hiding.

“I think I got him,” Robin announced, settling on a single location. “A laboratory once owned by the disgraced inventor T. O. Morrow. There’s a blackzone around it where I can’t get any feeds, and I guarantee that’s where Riddler’s set up his base of operations.”

“Well then,” Weiss began as she checked Myrtenaster. “What are we waiting for? Let’s go nab this guy.”

“Took the words right out my mouth,” Robin stated before he, Ruby, and Weiss flew off into the night.

* * *

 

When the trio finally arrived at the building, Weiss couldn’t help but sneer at its condition. It was dilapidated and condemned. Broken windows were sealed off by plywood, dark streaks of grime and Gods knew what else cascaded down the brick exterior, and the rain gutters were hanging off of the roof by a thread. It was disgusting, which made it a perfect place for a madman to set up shop.

“ _I’m in position,_ ” Robin announced as he glided over to the building’s roof. He pressed a button on his mask, then frowned. “ _Lead lined walls and roofs. I can’t see inside._ ”

“ _Thermal’s not picking up anything, either,_ ” Ruby revealed as she lay prone on a rooftop opposite the laboratory, holding a scope to her eye.

“Paranoid, isn’t he?” Weiss rhetorically asked, and she saw Robin nod. “How are we going to get in?”

“ _One moment,_ ” Robin said as he pulled out an apparatus. It unfolded, revealing a twin-stick interface and a holographic projection into his HUD. At the same time, his HUD changed perspective, showing them the electronics in the immediate area.

“ _There, next to you Ivory,_ ” Robin announced while placing a group waypoint. Weiss followed it, seeing that it landed on a wall-embedded computer monitor with a built-in keyboard.

“I see it,” Weiss replied as she made her way towards it. The screen was idle, showing only a dull green Wayne Industries logo that briefly flickered to a question mark. She pressed a few keys, which immediately caused the screen to shift.

“It’s password protected,” Weiss revealed. Without saying a word, Robin dropped the apparatus from above, which she easily caught.

“ _Use this,_ ” Robin preemptively answered, and Weiss nodded. She then crouched down and reopened the apparatus, which then wirelessly connected to the computer. Ten underscores appeared in the projection, and after taking a few moments to determine how the hacker worked, Weiss began to manipulate it. Letters shifted across the screen as she used the device to create words, hoping that one of them would answer it. Combination after combination formed on screen, but none were the correct answer.

“Stupid thing,” Weiss grumbled as she continued to work the device. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ruby glide over to a barely intact fire escape, while Robin had returned to a sealed skylight. Finally, Weiss formed one final password combination, reading “ALANTURING”, and the computer beeped in acceptance. Around the building, she heard the unlatching of locks, and smiled as she pocketed the device.

“We’re in,” Weiss stated as she moved to the door, clutching Myrtenaster in her hand while gently opening it with the other. When she got inside, she was greeted by a moldy interior, the walls heavily rotted. Dust floated in the air, and a foul stench threatened to make Weiss hurl. She kept the contents of her stomach contained, with great difficulty, and put on her rebreather before continuing her trek inside. Even if this air wasn’t technically poisonous, she saw no reason to subject herself to it.

“ _I’m on the third floor,_ ” Robin spoke through the radio as he entered the building.

“ _Second for me. Geez, this guy needs to clean up the place,_ ” Ruby complained, to which Weiss nodded. She crept into the next room, seeing pieces of broken lab equipment scattered across the floor and on tables. Years of dust was accumulated on them, telling her that for whatever reason, Riddler wasn’t using it. Whether it was due to disinterest or simply not part of his current plan, she couldn’t begin to guess.

When she entered the next room, she saw that, unlike the rest, it had been completely cleared. There was clear evidence towards work being conducted in the room, judging by the suspicious lack of furniture and dust. The floor itself became a grate of metal and glass instead of hardwood, and despite the clear invitation, Weiss refused to step foot on it. Instead, she went back into the next room and, using a glyph, placed a wooden chair on one of the panels. Nothing happened, causing her to frown.

“Alright, Nygma. I know this is one of your tricks,” she announced to the empty room, spinning around to try and see if there were any clues towards his whereabouts. “One that I’m not going to fall for. So, how about you make this easy and just come on out.”

“ _Oh, but Ivory?_ ” Riddler replied over the building’s intercoms, the lights suddenly turning on and illuminating the activated panels. “ _Where’s the fun in that?_ ”

Weiss watched as the chair suddenly had electricity course through it. The wood charred and burned, but otherwise remained intact. Rather than appear fearful, Weiss looked unamused and placed her hand on her hips.

“ _Oh, come on!_ ” Robin shouted, telling her that he, too, was experiencing the same thing.

“ _Why’d you have to taunt him?_ ” Ruby asked, and Weiss groaned.

“Oh, like him doing this is my fault?!”

“ _And the arguing begins already!_ ” Riddler taunted, causing Weiss to growl and clench her fist. “ _A pity, given my latest puzzle. If you can’t work as one, it’ll make you all sizzle._ ”

“What makes you think we’re going to play your game?” Weiss asked, and Riddler laughed.

“ _Hoho! You don’t have a choice!_ ” As Riddler spoke, Weiss heard locks clamp shut all around the building, and metal doors slammed themselves from in-between the door she walked in. Quickly, she spun around the room, watching as every entrance and exit was barricaded before her very eyes.

‘ _Dammit, it was a trap!_ ’ Weiss realized with a grimace, while Riddler cackled.

“ _Now you finally realize how out of your depth you truly are!_ ” Riddler mocked as the building shuddered. “ _You and your feeble little minds had no chance of besting me, not when you’ve fallen into my little trap. If you ever want to leave this building alive, you have no option but to solve my puzzle before the timer runs out, which I sincerely doubt you’d be able to do._ ”

Riddler stopped talking as a large screen descended from the roof. A projector shown a countdown onto it, starting at sixty before ticking down. Weiss didn’t want to know what would happen when the countdown reached zero, but she had no intention of staying around to find out.

“ _Dammit, I can’t break through!_ ” Robin shouted as dull thuds rang through the walls, likely explosions.

“ _Neither can I!_ ” Ruby responded, Weiss hearing her stab and slash Rose Thorn repeatedly into the thick metal. “ _This knife blade’s too short to get all the way through! Oh, if I had my sweetheart right now this’d be nothing!”_

Weiss, meanwhile, tried to lift up the barricade with her glyph, but the heavy object barely moved. If she had more time, or some of her old Earth Dust, she was certain she could get out, but neither was an option.

“We have no choice,” Weiss said as she eyed the countdown. Fifty seconds, it read, and Weiss frowned. She eyed the puzzle, kneeling down next to it while pressing down on her ear. “Do you guys see a bunch of floor panels, too? Ten by ten?”

“ _Yes, all electrified,_ ” Robin answered.

“ _Same,_ ” Ruby replied, and Weiss contemplated their situation. She thought back to Riddler’s taunt, about how if they didn’t work together, they would ‘sizzle’. Obviously, a reference to the electricity, but how would…

Weiss’ eyes widened as she realized exactly what to do. “Guys listen to me. We have to step on the exact same panel at the same time.”

“ _Are you sure?_ ” Ruby asked, and despite her partner not being able to see her, Weiss nodded.

“Yes,” she insisted. “I think we have to make a pattern.”

“ _Of what, exactly?_ ” Robin asked, then paused. “ _It’s a question mark, isn’t it?_ ”

“ _Probably,_ ” Ruby stated in a flat tone, and Weiss nodded. She looked back up at the timer and saw it was now nearing thirty seconds, and she frowned.

“Alright, I need you all to do exactly what I do,” Weiss said as she moved to the center of the grid. At the same time, she connected her mask to the others, which simultaneously showed her what they saw. “Reaper, move two spaces to the right. Robin, move one to the left.”

Both of her teammates moved themselves into position, and Weiss nodded. “Now, step onto the space.”

The superheroes moved as one, gently stepping onto the platform as instructed. Weiss instinctually flinched, as did Ruby and Robin, but to their relief no harm came to them. Instead, the gridspace lit up bright green, showing a dark question mark in its center. Each let out a sigh, and Weiss smiled before refocusing herself.

“Okay, now jump over the next space to the one behind it. One, two, three.”

Each of them jumped over the grid, their years of training allowing them to jump at the same time. Once again, none of them were shocked as the space lit up. With the time ticking down, the three heroes strode forward two more spaces, then on Weiss’ urging, moved right a single space. They then walked forward four more spaces before turning left for two more. Finally, with the countdown nearing the final seconds, they moved down one space to complete the question mark, and at once the entire grid lit up and flashed green. The countdown stopped at exactly one second left, yet all three instinctually flinched.

“… _Did we get it?_ ” Ruby quietly asked. As if answering her question, the metal doors closing them in slid open, allowing them the opportunity to escape. “ _I’ll take that as a yes!_ ”

“ _No!!_ ” Riddler yelled through the intercom once again while Weiss, Ruby, and Robin left the deathtrap. “ _You three are cheating, you have to be! You looked up the answers on the internet, didn’t you?!_ ”

“If your riddles and your puzzles are so basic that they can be looked up on the internet, that says more about you than me,” Weiss taunted as she ran through the building, and Riddler screamed in frustration.

“ _GAAGH!_ ”

Weiss smirked as she eyed a series of wires extending out of the walls and into the floors and ceiling. At the same time, she saw red barrels embedded into the walls, the smell of gasoline coming out of them. She figured he likely intended that, if they couldn’t complete the puzzle on time, he’d set the building on fire, or at the very least their rooms. Above, she heard the pattering of Ruby’s feet, and when the wires went upstairs, Weiss followed them and almost ran into her partner.

“Oh, hey!” Ruby greeted Weiss with a smile before the two continued to follow the wires. Ruby pulled out Rose Thorn, sliding it back to load a round before they finally came across a metal walled room in the middle of a long corridor. Robin ran in from the other side, his sword held in hand, and nodded towards them. The young vigilante held a finger to his lips, telling them to be quiet as he crept to the room. Weiss and Ruby followed, forming up on the opposite side of a door. Silently, Robin pulled out a small metal wire with a camera attached to the end and poked it underneath the door. There, through the small lens, they saw a room filled with computer monitors of all shapes and sizes.  

“They cheated, they must have been,” they heard Riddler mumble as he walked back and forth inside the room, throwing objects haphazardly into a bag. Robin nodded at the confirmation he was there, and prepared to pull back the camera when the Riddler suddenly stopped and turned towards the door. The crazed man snarled, then aimed his cane at the door and pressed a button on its side, causing a large minigun to pop out of the wall next to him.

“Move!” Ruby yelled as she grabbed Weiss and Robin and used her Semblance to burst them away just as a hail of gunfire tore through sheet metal and rotten wood. Sparks and splinters filled the air as a deafening cacophony of gunfire erupted around them. The three heroes lay prone, covering their heads while trying to figure out what to do.

“Goodbye, cheaters!” the Riddler taunted as he opened an escape hatch from inside the room, and they heard a ladder extend to the ground. “Maybe next time!”

“Oh, there won’t be a next time, for I am officially done!” Weiss shouted as she formed a shield of Nth metal glyphs around herself and her two teammates. The bullets slammed into them as she stood up, each impact causing the glyphs to shake and ripple like raindrops on a pond’s surface but otherwise do no harm. Robin, Ruby, and Weiss herself charged through the gunfire, Weiss forcing her Aura entirely into her Semblance to block the otherwise fatal blows and caught a glimpse of Riddler’s foot escaping to the floor above.

“Robin, the gun!” Weiss shouted. At once, Robin pulled out a batarang and threw it around the edge of the glyphs and towards the still firing minigun. The thrown projectile latched onto the weapon, and instantly short-circuited it. The minigun whined and slowed to a stop, the gunfire ceasing, but neither of them allowed themselves a chance to rest. Ruby grabbed hold of them once again, turning all three into a cloud of red, white, and orange rose petals. She followed Riddler’s footsteps up to the roof, turning herself tangible just as he made his way towards the roof’s edge.

“Oh no you don’t!” Ruby shouted as she aimed Rose Thorn at Riddler’s back, then fired a shock round into him. With a pained gasp, Edward Nygma spasmed to the ground, and Weiss encased his wrists and ankles in glyphs while Robin tied him with a bolo.

“Don’t move,” Robin hissed as he held his sword to Riddler’s throat, the electricity coming to a halt. Weiss forced the Riddler to his knees and joined Robin in pointing her weapon threateningly at him. Ruby joined from the side, and only then did the Riddler look up from the ground.

“You have a gun? You weren’t supposed to have a gun,” he complained, but Ruby cheekily smirked.

“You should see my baby,” she said, then looked at her partners. She motioned Weiss to take the lead, knowing that her partner was more skilled in this area than she was, and Weiss quickly took the opportunity.

“Now then, Edward,” Weiss began, crouching down to look at the Riddler at eye level. “We have a few questions we want to ask you. We already know you sold Jonathan Crane a copy of your Enigma computing system, which he then used as part of a greater plot to plunge the city into chaos. That makes you an accomplice to an act that caused millions of dollars in property damage, not to mention hundreds of hospitalizations and dozens of deaths.”

Nygma said nothing and merely growled, and Weiss narrowed her eyes. “We can do this the easy way or the hard way, Edward. Don’t make us do the hard way.”

“And what might _that_ entail, exactly?” Edward Nygma mockingly asked, only for Robin to bring his face close to his. Using the pommel of his sword, Robin edged the Riddler closer and closer to the roof’s edge, and as his back extended out from it, Robin hissed into his ear.

“That’s one question you don’t want answered,” Robin told him, dangling the Riddler by the scruff of his shirt. A suddenly paler Riddler quickly nodded, knowing that like the Red Hood, the current Robin was entirely serious in his threats. Robin quickly pulled Riddler back, and the green-clad man breathed in and out for a few moments before recomposing himself. A heavy pause hung over the air as the three young heroes stared at the top of Riddler’ s head.

“I didn’t sell Enigma to him,” he quietly spoke, his head hanging down.

“But you did sell it,” Ruby pointed out, and he nodded.

“Yes, I did. To a third party.”

“Do you know who they are?” Robin asked, but Riddler shook his head.

“No, because they lied and cheated. I thought they were working for Black Mask and wanted my system to avoid police detection, but when Scarecrow set off his bombs, I recognized my handiwork. I assure you, I had nothing to do with him.”

“Yet you still intended to sell your system to a wanted criminal?” Weiss crossed her arms and frowned, but Riddler remained unapologetic.

“Yes, just not one who’s completely crazy. I have standards, unlike the rest of the idiots in this city.”

“Indeed.” Weiss huffed and shook her head. “We’re getting off topic. Do you have any idea who they can be?”

“No, again because they cheated. All I knew was that they were very dangerous people, people I didn’t want to mess with. It’s why I was hiding in here for the past month, minding my own business until you came along.”

Weiss frowned, noticing the glaring omission in the Riddler’s statement. “And the riddles? And the puzzles?”

The Riddler didn’t answer and instead looked away with a grimace, telling her everything she needed to know. True to the files she had read up on him, the Riddler was obsessive over his games, and even when he was in hiding, he simply couldn’t help himself. A part of her felt sad for him, but she pushed that thought aside.

“Edward Nygma, you’re under arrest.”

* * *

 

After Ruby and Robin went back down to Nygma’s control room to connect Oracle to his mainframe, the Batwing was sent for them. The VTOL aircraft ferried them across town, the landscape below them shifting from concrete jungle to dense swamp and finally a thick forest. A worn road wound through the landscape, connecting Gotham City with perhaps its most infamous location. As the Batwing landed and allowed them to escort the Riddler out and into the arms of waiting staff, they saw a sign over the building’s main entrance.

“Welcome to Arkham Asylum,” Robin said as they escorted Edward Nygma and the nurses through the building. Once inside, the trio felt as though a dark presence was weighing down on all of them, and neither of the huntresses could stop a shiver from running down their spines. As they continued walking down, their heads swiveled from side to side, paying close attention to the what was happening around them.

“Gods, it’s like out something out of a horror movie,” Weiss whispered, keeping an eye on the dark, gothic architecture and feeling the heavy atmosphere, and Robin nodded.

“Yes. None of us like it, and we’ve tried everything to make it better,” Robin revealed, keeping his hand hovering near his sword. “Trust me when I say that there is literally no other place for miles that can keep these people contained safely, and they do try their best.”

They continued down the corridor, passing by several guard stations before finally reaching a service elevator. A contingent of guards, armed with rifles, were waiting for them, led by a bearded man with a hook for a hand. Ruby could read the nametag on his chest, and saw that it said ‘Aaron Cash’.

“Well, welcome back, Riddler,” Aaron greeted the bound supervillain, who himself merely grumbled angrily. Aaron smiled at this, then looked towards the young heroes as Riddler was escorted away. “Thanks for the assist. He broke out a few months ago, and we hadn’t been able to find him.”

“He didn’t make it easy for us,” Weiss admitted, to which Aaron nodded.

“He does that.” Aaron then offered his hand, which all three heroes gladly took to shake. “We’ve got it under control from here, and I won’t take up any more of your time.”

“Thank you, Officer Cash,” Robin replied, genuinely sounding respectful. He alongside Ruby and Weiss turned around, preparing to leave, only to stop as a red light suddenly flashed. The security guards and Robin grew tense while Ruby and Weiss became alarmed.

“What’s going on?” Ruby asked, pulling out Rose Thorn.

“Prisoner transfer,” Aaron Cash answered, a frown on his face. He then clicked the safety of his rifle off, the rest of his squad echoing his action. His attention was focused squarely on a metal door, and a series of clangs told that several were being opened in quick succession. All was quiet, the only sounds being doors opening and nervous breathing.

Then they heard it. It started small, faint and muffled from all the walls in between them. But it steadily grew louder and louder, to the point where it became unmistakable. A loud, uproarious laughter was echoing from behind the door, and as the door opened, Ruby and Weiss felt a cold chill fill their souls.

“HAHAHAH!! HAHAH!” the man laughed despite having fifteen guns pointed at him at all times, and that was just his immediate guard. By now, every single officer and security guard was aiming their weapons at the man. Even Robin was holding out his sword, glaring with hateful eyes at the prisoner, yet the sight only made him laugh harder.

“HAHAHA! Really, all this for me? I’m touched, truly,” he said, continuing to giggle as he was being escorted into the elevator. He caught a glimpse of the three heroes, and his manic smile grew wider and exposed more of his yellow teeth. “Oh, goody! Batsy’s gone and adopted more young sidekicks. Ohho, I look forward to playing with you soon~!”

Ruby and Weiss were stunned to silence, and the man laughed harder. Aaron Cash and the rest of his guards piled into the elevator, refusing to take any chances, but the man kept his attention squarely on them. He continued to laugh, even as the doors closed behind him and the elevator descended into the asylum’s depths. Only once the muffled laughter disappeared did the two huntresses allow themselves to breathe, and shakily they looked towards Robin.

“Was… Was that…?” Ruby began, and Robin nodded.

“Yes. That was the Joker,” he answered, and again Weiss shivered. They had all heard stories about the Joker, about what he did and what he was capable of despite having no powers of his own. Both teams RWBY and JNPR understood that, not willing to underestimate the threat he posed. But to see him in the flesh, to hear his mad laughter, disturbed and frightened them more than they liked to admit.

“Let’s get out of here,” Ruby stated, and without saying a word, Robin and Weiss joined her.

[~][~]


	29. You Think That You'll Break Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yang, Blake, and Batwoman infiltrate the Iceberg Lounge in search of answers regarding Scarecrow's weapons, only to bite more than they can chew.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 21: You Think That You’ll Break Me **

[~][~]

“So,” Yang began as she and Blake walked on the sidewalk, moving with the pedestrian traffic, “what’s the plan?”

“Right now,” Blake answered, “we wait until Kate gives us the signal, then we move in.”

“I got that. My question is, how are we going to get in?”

“I’m sure you’ll think of something.” Blake said, continuing to walk along. Both she and Yang were wearing civilian clothes instead of their costumes, allowing them to blend in seamlessly among the Gotham nightlife. Both girls were wearing evening gowns, Blake’s a rich black and Yang’s a vibrant yellow. The skirts stretched down to cover their feet, but never once did they threaten to trip over it. Their backs were exposed to the cool autumn air, as were their arms and neckline. Thick purses were hanging over their shoulders, which housed their actual equipment while also completing the look.

“You know, just gonna say it. We look _good_ ,” Yang pointed out, to which Blake silently agreed. She refocused her attention to their surroundings, and it was a stark contrast to what one normally thought of Gotham. They were in a more upscale part of the city, filled with nice shops, restaurants, and clubs. For a moment, the street created a mask that could make one think Gotham’s reputation was undeserved. But, upon taking a single look at their destination, that mask withered away.

The Iceberg Lounge sat at the end of the street, a gleaming white building made to look like an iceberg. Smaller columns with an ice-like appearance marked the entrance, where a pair of burly security guards opened and closed a velvet rope for would-be patrons. The patrons themselves were clearly high class, judging by the jewels and expensive clothing they wore, not to mention the air of arrogance only a rich person could expel. Months of living with Weiss had made them accustomed to it, even if the girl was honestly trying.

“Do you see her?” Yang asked, but Blake shook her head.

“Not yet,” the Faunus replied with a small frown, “and I don’t see a way in. It may not look like it, but this place is heavily guarded. Guards, security cameras, everything you could think of.”

“Damn,” Yang cursed and shook her head as they passed a young woman with short black hair wearing a fine dress. Still not seeing their escort, Yang and Blake spotted a bench and sat down on it, keeping their attention focused on the lounge. They continued to wait, Yang twiddling her thumbs while Blake tapped her foot. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the felt their scrolls buzz and they both pulled theirs out.

“Kate? Where are you?” Yang asked first, scanning the environment to find the socialite.

“ _Currently in line,_ ” Kate answered. Blake looked towards the line, where they saw a woman with short red hair waving at them. Yang and Blake nodded, then hung up and walked towards her. Kate let them join the line behind her, and all three turned their attention to the front.

“Couldn’t have found a better way in?” Yang asked, and Kate shook her head.

“This was the easiest way,” Kate clarified as she led the two girls further down the line. “Once we get inside, you know what to do.”

Blake and Yang nodded in acknowledgement, then continued traversing the line. They listened in to the idle conversations around them, both to scope out any potential leads while also alleviating their boredom. Unfortunately, most were quite banal.

“Who’s that you’re wearing? Versace? Burburry?”

“Have to say, I’ve been looking forward to tonight, darling. The past few weeks have been absolutely dreadful.”

“Did you hear about Jump City? Thank goodness that madman was taken down in time. And to think, I thought about moving there.”

Similar conversations filled the air, and after a while Blake and Yang simply tuned them out. Instead, they focused on what they had to do. The plan was, at its core, simple. Get into the Iceberg Lounge, which they were about to do. Then, find information about the arms dealing, either from Cobblepot’s records or the Penguin himself. Finally, once they have what they need, get out. Simple enough, but part of Blake just knew that things wouldn’t go that simply. Nothing ever did anymore.

“Name?” the burly security guard said as the three made it to the front of the line.

“Katharine Kane,” Kate answered then pointed at Yang and Blake from behind her shoulder, “with two tagalongs.”

The security guard frowned and flipped through his list, then slowly nodded. He then turned towards the door and opened it, allowing the three women inside. A blast of cold air hit them as they passed the threshold, not cold enough to be uncomfortable but enough to be noticeable. Inside, they immediately noticed why it was called the ‘Iceberg Lounge’ as a mountain of ice jettisoned up to the rooftop. At its top sat a group of musicians, one playing a piano and the rest a series of string instruments, who filled the air with a sweet melody. A massive pool of ice and water sat in the middle, surrounded by multiple floors of tables, guests and waitresses. The room was constructed of fine white marble, textured to look like ice, with sparkling glass chandeliers hanging overhead. Inside the pool, they saw live seals swimming about and lounging lazily on hunks of ice alongside penguins, fish, and other arctic and Antarctic animals.

“Whew, and I thought this place was fancy on the outside,” Yang noted.

“Too bad it’s all a front,” Blake replied with a frown.

“Never said it wasn’t. Still, I can definitely see why people like this place.”

Just as Yang finished speaking, a waiter carrying a plate of shrimp in dipping glasses walked over to them and offered a sample. With a smile on her face, Yang took one and waved him along before biting down.

“Oh my god, this is delicious!” Yang enthusiastically announced as she finished the sample, causing Blake to sigh and Kate to shake her head.

“Is she always like this?” Kate whispered to the Faunus.

“Yes.” Blake nodded, then looked around the main lounge. There were hundreds of patrons scattered around the floors, accompanied by even more waitresses and waiters. Several burly security guards stood careful watch at key points, with a few standing around what appeared to be empty walls. Blake wasn’t fooled, however, and knew that there were likely several secret entrances along those walls. Where they led, she could only guess.

“No obvious ways in,” Kate noted with a frown, twiddling her fingers. Yang looked around as well, trying to spot an opening, then smiled.

“Leave that to me,” she said, walking past a waiter carrying more shrimp, snagging another morsel on the way. Then, to Blake’s horror, she sashayed over to a young waiter. He noticed her immediately and blushed heavily as she came closer.

“Oh my god…” Blake muttered, covering her face, while Kate raised an eyebrow.

“Lively one, ain’t she?” she asked, and with her face still covered, Blake nodded.

“You have no idea,” Blake replied, sighing and removing her hands to look at Yang. She was flirting heavily with the young waiter, who was sputtering at her every move. At the same time, she saw Yang’s hand sneak around to his side, continuing to act as the flirt while actually swiping his keycard. The waiter hardly noticed it, so focused on Yang, before she whispered something into his ear and sent him off scurrying at a brisk pace. As he disappeared behind the counter, Yang walked back towards her partner and Kate, twiddling the swiped keycard in her hands.

“Got it,” she declared with a smile, then handed the card to Blake. “You guys go ahead, I’ll catch up.”

“Why?” Blake asked, and Yang smiled.

“I’m getting more of those shrimp things, obviously. Seriously, they’re really good. Plus, not only would I look like a jerk after pulling that stunt, it would put suspicion on us.”

“No, I mean why—”

“Meet us at the east wing,” Kate interrupted with a nod. Yang smiled and flashed a thumbs up, then the Batwoman dragged Blake away as Yang went back to the bar just as the waiter came back with a plate of shrimp. The two women walked through the crowd, putting more and more distance between them and Yang, and before long they found themselves in a slightly less crowded hallway. A pair of guards stood watch at the far end just before the corridor turned into a corner as waiters and waitresses helped their guests, leaving no obvious blind spots for them to exploit, not that they could before Yang rejoined them.

Kate pointed to one of the walls, to which Blake nodded. They made their way over through the crowd, trying to avoid any patrons, only for Blake to accidentally bump one that appeared out of nowhere.

“Oof!” Blake grunted as her body rotated to the side, her Aura not up. The blonde woman was sent reeling back as well, but before she could fall over, Blake caught her by the hand and kept her up.

“Ooh, my goodness,” the woman slurred. “Clumsy me.”

“Are you okay, miss?” Blake asked as she helped the clearly drunk woman steady herself. The woman dusted herself off, checking on her nice dress before nodding in drunken acceptance.

“I’m fine. Really, truly,” she insisted, then looked at Blake and smiled while holding out her hand. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name. Irena Dubrovna. You?”

“Blake Belle,” Blake replied, shaking the woman’s hand. “Again, I’m sorry for bumping into you, Ms. Dubrovna.”

“It’s fine, really. Well, I won’t keep you or your friend any longer,” Irena stated before wandering off, swaying from side to side. Blake watched her go to ensure she wouldn’t fall over, and once the drunken woman disappeared into the crowd she turned to walk back towards Kate. The older woman nodded as Blake leaned against the wall, and a light silence fell between them as they waited for Yang to make her way over.

“So,” Kate started after a moment, her eyes fixated on the crowd, “what’s your story?”

Blake thought on how best to answer, then shrugged. “Same as many. Started with a group thinking we were doing the right thing, only for them to become worse and worse until I could no longer stomach it. So, I left, met Yang, Weiss, and Ruby, and you know the rest.”

Blake knew that wasn’t entirely sufficient of an answer, but she could recognize the tactic Kate was using. The Batwoman was using the appearance of conversation to throw anyone off their scent, and she intended to play along the best they could. Kate nodded back, then crossed her arms.

“Former army myself, before I got discharged for bullshit reasons. Kinda drifted from place to place before finally settling on Gotham. Been here ever since.”

Blake nodded at Kate’s response just as Yang finally came over to them. She had a proud smile on her face, almost victorious, which only caused her partner to sigh.

“You know, he was kinda sweet. Not my type, but I was able to help him out with someone else,” Yang declared as she folded her hands behind  her head. Blake narrowed her eyes at Yang, then sighed again before looking at Kate.

“You ready?” Kate asked as she subtly pulled out a small cylinder from her purse. Yang nodded, adjusting the golden bracelets on her wrists in emphasis as Blake tugged on a ribbon wrapped around her arm. Kate nodded back, glanced at the guards, then pressed a button on the cylinder. At once, every light in the Iceberg Lounge shut off, plunging the entire room into darkness. Scared and confused screams rang out as patrons wondered what was going on while workers raced to fix the problem, but after a few seconds the lights came back on. Everyone stared at the lights tentatively, as if daring them to turn off again, but when nothing happened, they shrugged and went back to doing what they were doing before.

No one noticed the women who’d slunk their way past the guards, not even the men themselves.

* * *

 

The three women managed to find an empty room further down the hallway, away from any patrolling guards. There, in relative privacy, they were able to change into their costumes and stow their formal attire as best they could.

“All clear,” Blake stated as she peeked out the door, looking for any guards. With Gambol Shroud drawn and loaded with rubber bullets and outfitted with a suppressor, Blake filed out first, followed by Yang and Batwoman. The two huntresses allowed Batwoman to take point, who led them further into the hallway.

“Our best bet is to find the Penguin’s archives,” Batwoman explained as they ran down the hallway. “Barring that, we take the direct approach.”

“Sounds good to me,” Yang said. The Golden Dragon never was one to prefer stealth over a straight up fight but could when the situation called for it. Hopefully, should they feel the need to ask the Penguin directly, he’d be in a compliable mood. If not, Yang knew she had ways to make him talk.

Suddenly, Blake stopped, her ears twitching as they picked up a faint sound coming towards them. Recognizing the sign immediately, Yang threw herself to the side behind a wall outcropping while Batwoman and her partner did the same on the opposite side. A few moments later, a pair of burly men wielding assault rifles calmly walked down the corridor, idly chatting among themselves. Yang prepared to attack them, only for Batwoman to shake her head and subtly point to blinking devices mounted on their wrists. Yang’s mask scanned them, and she had to bite back a curse as they were identified as military-grade heartbeat monitors.

“God, that blackout could not have come at a worse time,” one complained while hoisting his rifle over his shoulder as he and his partner moved past the hidden superheroes.

“Yeah. There’s nothing worse than having to use the restroom in the dark. Got Cobblepot all spooked, though,” the other replied, keeping his rifle in hand pointed downward.

“You think there’s someone here? Cops? One of the Bat-Freaks?”

“Possibly.” He winced then rubbed his arms. “Hope it’s cops and not them, though. Arm still feels a bit numb from the last time.”

“Yep.” The thug nodded, then smirked knowingly. “Still, once the boss gets this deal going, all of us are going to get a lot richer.”

“Haha! You know it!” The other thug laughed as the two of them travelled further down the hallway, eventually disappearing behind a corner. Once they were out of sight, the three heroes stepped out from the shadows, frowns plastered across their faces.

“A deal? With Scarecrow?” Blake suggested, and Batwoman’s frown deepened.

“Possibly. Only one way to find out.”

Blake and Yang nodded, then the three continued running down the corridors. The Faunus kept her ears peeled, discerning where any guards were and how to avoid them. Although they were confident in their ability to take them down, the heartbeat monitors made taking one down an open invitation to be swarmed. Finally, they came across a lone metal gate stretching across the hallway, halting their progress.

“We’re here,” Batwoman declared as she walked up to the door. She stepped next to a keycard reader then held out her hand expectantly. Knowing what she was looking for, Blake nodded and reached into her pouch to pull out the swiped keycard. Only, to her surprise, she couldn’t find it. Blake fished her hand around the pouch, reaching every corner of it, but with growing alarm she found that it wasn’t there.

“What’s the hold-up?” Yang asked, and Blake looked at her partner in alarm.

“The keycard. It’s gone,” she revealed, causing both Yang and Batwoman to stare at her incredulously.

“Are you serious? How?” Batwoman demanded.

“I literally just gave it to you,” Yang pointed out, mildly annoyed. Blake thought back to when she last had the keycard, trying to find how she could have misplaced. Then an encounter came to mind, and Blake groaned.

Blake groaned in realization. “I know what happened. As I was putting the keycard away, I bumped into a woman. Irena-something. I must have dropped it on accident.”

“Great.” Batwoman groaned and shook her head, then took out a hacking device and hovered it over the card reader. “Cover me. This might take a while.”

Both Blake and Yang nodded, then took position along the wall. A few tense minutes passed, faint footsteps growing closer and closer as the patrol they had just passed was returning.

“Clear,” Batwoman said as the device beeped. The door unlocked, and quickly the three heroes piled through the threshold. Once they were all inside, they closed the door and locked it, leaving no trace of their entrance.

Yang and Blake took the time to look at their surroundings. In contrast to the gleam and glamor that was the public areas, this section of the Iceberg Lounge hid no truths. The entire room they found themselves in was covered in a thick layer of dust, several sections of wallpaper peeling away to reveal the cheap wood underneath. To them, this place reeked of criminal activity, which seemed appropriate given the owner.

“What’s our next move?” Blake asked as the three of them moved into an adjacent room, where they found an old air duct grate.

“The sewers,” Batwoman answered as she pried open the grate.

“Ew, seriously?” Yang whined and grimaced, but to her displeasure Batwoman nodded.

“Yes, unfortunately. There’s a route directly underneath that’ll take us right to his office, and this airduct will take us straight to it.”

Yang sighed, then felt Blake pat her shoulder in sympathy. The Golden Dragon looked at her, then took a deep breath and pinched her nose.

“I swear, I’m going to smell for a week,” Yang muttered as she entered the duct. Blake smiled wistfully and shook her head, then prepared to enter, only to stop as she heard a faint sound. She turned her head sharply to the door, certain that was where she heard it, but there was nothing. Blake switched her mask’s vision to see through the thin wood, but again saw nothing but a few rats. After a few more moments, she shrugged, then entered the air duct, closing it behind her.

* * *

 

“You have to be kidding me,” Blake declared as the three looked over a vast pool of salt water. The journey to get to this point involved a lot of cramped spaces and wallcrawling, which at times was uncomfortable, but that was nothing compared to the sight before her.

“Yep,” Batwoman nodded, pursing her lips as they watched a large shadow swim beneath the water’s surface. A lone fin jetted above, and a thick tail swiveled from side to side as the creature prowled its environment.

“The Penguin has a freaking shark?”

“Calls it Bruce, actually.”

“Oh, he named it. So, it’s a pet, then?”

Blake’s ears twitched again as Batwoman looked around the room. She spotted a tunnel leading out of the pool then pointed to it.

“Through there, I take it?” she asked, and Batwoman nodded.

“Yep. That will take you right below Cobblepot’s office. We just have to get past Bruce.”

“Joy,” Yang quipped, then readied her shotgun gauntlets. She looked around, trying to spot any way to traverse the obstacle, then pointed towards a wooden raft on a small dock. “Will that work?”

“It’ll have to,” Batwoman noted, then jumped off the overhang they were perched on and glided to the raft. Blake was following her, jumping from pole to pole down to the dock. Yang, meanwhile, pondered how she was going to get across, then snapped her fingers before launching a zipline to the wall above the dock. Hooking one of her gauntlets up to it, she rode the line down to the dock. Once they were all on the dock, they tentatively stepped out onto the raft, Batwoman pulling out her batclaw in preparation.

“Ready?” she asked, and the other passengers nodded as they braced themselves. Batwoman nodded back, then aimed the batclaw at the opposite wall and fired. The metal prongs embedded themselves into the concrete, allowing her to pull the raft forward.

“Need some help there?” Yang asked, preparing to step forward, only for the raft to suddenly rock violently as the shark passed underneath. The women steadied themselves, keeping a careful eye on the shark and their weapons aimed towards it.

“No. If that thing gets near, you shoot it,” Batwoman ordered, and Blake and Yang nodded. The two loaded their guns, then stared out over the dark water. The shark was circling them, staring through an unblinking black eye as though they were prey. It was unnerving, to say the least.

“Say, Kate? Quick question, how does the Penguin feed this guy?” Yang asked, but Batwoman didn’t answer immediately.

“… You don’t want to know,” Batwoman finally replied, shuddering at a foul memory. Yang took a moment to process her vague statement, then paled as realization sunk in.

“Message received. Geez…” she muttered, only for the raft to shake once again, this time more violently. The heroes hobbled back and forth, trying to keep their balance. Yang and Blake held onto each other, while Batwoman kept balance on her own. Slowly, the rocking stopped, and the water grew calm as the shadow disappeared from view. The three women waited a few more moments, still huddled together, then separated.

“Whew,” Yang gasped, wiping some water from her forehead, “talk about a—”

Without warning, a massive grey and white shape leapt from the water off their port side. Yang barely had the time to even turn around as the shark’s jaws slammed into her, the massive weight splintering the part of the raft she was on while dragging her below the waves.

“Yang!” she heard Blake yell, her voice muffled by the cascading waves as Yang was dragged further and further into the ice-cold pool. The shark’s jaws were clamped tightly around Yang’s leg, trying to bite through her Aura, but Yang was already on the offense. She threw punch after punch at the shark’s eye, trying to dislodge it, but the beast’s thrashing was throwing her aim off so that her knuckles were skidding off his sandpapery skin instead of connecting solidly, and the resistance of the pressurized water slowing down her punches wasn’t helping matters. The massive fish was either too stubborn or too tough for her deflecting blows to make any headway.

Yang sputtered, a rush of bubbles escaping from her mouth, and her vision began to blur. She was drowning, Yang realized, while being thrashed about by a giant great white shark. Her mind raced, trying to figure out a way through it. Outside help wasn’t happening, as both Blake’s and Batwoman’s pistols simply weren’t powerful enough to maintain lethal force this far down underwater. Ember Celica itself was also out of the question, with the firing mechanism completely waterlogged. As her fist slid off the ridge of the shark’s retracted eye, Yang was yet again reminded of how her own punches weren’t working properly, and she began to panic.

Then, in a moment of pure desperation, an idea popped into Yang’s head. She forced herself to remain calm, then pulled a single shell from one of her bandoliers. A particularly vicious shake caused it to slip from her fingers, and the brass casing began to sink down towards the dark depths of the tank, but Yang was able to fumble and catch it before being yanked to the side yet again. More bubbles escaped from her mouth, but she still forced herself to be calm. The shark continued to chew on her legs, her Aura the only thing keeping its jaws at bay, then Yang pressed the shell against where she thought the eye was. They were so far underwater now, it was hard to see anything. With her lungs and Aura straining, Yang reinforced her finger with Aura, then flicked the cap. A muffled bang sounded, followed by a sudden release of pressure on her legs and a cloud of red blood filling the water. She heard the shark swim away in pain, but Yang took no time to bask in her quick thinking. She was already swimming to the surface as fast as she could, and just as she felt the sudden need to inhale, regardless of what came in, her head broke above the water’s surface. She gasped for breath, dripping water cascading down her head, and began to hear shouts.

“Yang! Get over here, now!” Blake shouted, a mixture of fear and relief filling her voice. With water dripping over her eyes, Yang swam towards her partner, only to hear gunshots as both Blake and Batwoman fired their pistols at something coming from behind her. Not looking back, Yang swam harder, her feet kicking splashes of water high into the air. She then felt something wrap itself around her arm and felt a light tug towards the side.

“Come on!” Batwoman yelled, balancing herself on a wooden pole. She had shot her batclaw around Yang’s gauntlet, using her free hand to fire her pistol towards Bruce, and Yang pulled herself towards the vigilante while Batwoman herself braced against the pole. She heard the churn behind her as the shark was momentarily driven away once again, the noise unbearably close to her. Once she finally reached the pole, Batwoman helped her up, and together balanced on its top.

Yang wiped the water from her eyes and saw that the pool now had a noticeable red stain in it. Blake was on the other side, their half-raft nestled against the tunnel. A series of thin wooden poles, the remains of a walkway, separated them, telling Yang how Batwoman had managed to traverse the waterway. Taking deep breaths, Batwoman looked at Yang in concern, checking over her body for any injuries.

“Are you hurt?” Batwoman asked, but Yang shook her head.

“No. The blood ain’t mine,” Yang replied, breathing heavily. She then looked down at the pool, seeing that the blood had spread out like thin tendrils across a dark canvas, and frowned.

“Think he’s gone?” she asked.

“I’m not staying around to find out,” Batwoman replied, to which Yang nodded heavily. Carefully, the two bounded across the poles, Batwoman helping to keep Yang’s balance, and before long the two finally found themselves on the remains of the raft. Yang was immediately greeted by a desperate hug from Blake, which Yang readily returned. Batwoman let the two partners have their moment, then silently pulled the remains deeper into the tunnel. Yang took the pause to catch her breath from the harrowing ordeal, her heavy breaths steadily returning to normal.

“You know,” Yang finally began once they reached the other side and disembarked, “I think I would have preferred the armed guards.”

“You and me, both,” Batwoman admitted.

* * *

 

All three took a few minutes to catch their breath and recover from the harrowing shark attack, and so Yang could get Ember Celica’s guns functional again after their saltwater bath, but before long they were on the move again. The smell, accompanied by the series of pipes and water told them they were in the sewers, which didn’t surprise them. Gotham’s sewers were vast and archaic depending on which part of the city you were in, which made them perfect places for criminals to hide.

“Uggh, I can feel it in my shoes…” Yang grimaced as she shimmied along a narrow pipe, following Batwoman. Blake was behind her, grimacing as they tried their best to ignore the foul stench coming from the putrid water.

“We’re almost there,” Batwoman said. Sure enough, the pipe ended in a metal grate, at which point she gently opened it and took a look around the room.

“All clear,” she revealed as she opened the grate all the way, allowing herself room to exit the pipe. One by one, the rest of the heroes pried their way out and dusted as much of the water, dirt, and grime from their bodies as best they could.

“As soon as we get home, I’m taking a shower,” Blake stated, and Yang nodded along with her, muttering to herself about the thorough cleaning she’d have to put her gauntlets through to prevent damage when they got back to the Manor.

“We’re right below him,” Batwoman revealed. She pressed her cowl and tried to look through the ceiling, but the concrete was too thick. She frowned, but ultimately nodded. As quietly as they could, the three scaled the wall, eventually finding themselves a small hatch leading to the underside of a wood-floored room. They crawled through the hatch and underneath the floorboards, and as they did, they heard a man with a Cockney accent curse and strut around the room.

“I don’t care if you boys haven’t found ‘em yet. I know they’re here, and I want ‘em dead! Understand?” the Penguin demanded through his phone, which Batwoman immediately connected their comms to.

“ _Yessir, Mr. Cobblepot,_ ” they heard one of his many thugs reply, to which the Penguin scoffed.

“You better. That blackout almost called the whole deal off, and if I find out it really was caused by one of them freaks and they got away without any of you noticing, it’ll be on your head,” he threatened. The thug on the other line audibly gulped, then hung up to search some more.

“Bunch’a amateurs,” he grumbled as he sat down on a velvet chair. Then, to his surprise, he heard muffled music come from outside his office. He frowned, figuring that one of his men decided to be funny and show off his latest mixtape. Cobblepot had half a mind to go down and shut it up but decided to get a smoke first. After today, he needed one.

He reached into a nearby desk and opened it, pulling out a cigar box. Grabbing one, he plopped it in his mouth as he put the box away, then grabbed a lighter and lit it. Bringing the small fire to the front of the stogie, he waited for the end to singe, and once it did, he breathed sharply and felt the smoke fill his lungs. The Penguin flicked the lighter shut, looking towards his desk as he put the lighter inside the drawer, then closed it. He puffed some more, then looked towards the door and prepared to head out.

Only for Batwoman to suddenly sock him across the jaw and send him flying back into his chair.

“What the-?!” he squawked in surprise, his cigar flying from his mouth and across the room. Before he could even attempt to reach for his umbrella, a black ribbon wrapped itself around his chest, pinning him to the chair.

“Why you little-! Untie me this instant!” Cobblepot demanded as Yang calmly walked over and locked the door, then leaned back against the wall and crossed her arms. He scowled at her, while Yang merely smiled and waved dismissively. Batwoman then stepped in front of him, pulling up a chair to sit on, and glared into his eyes.

“Hello, Cobblepot,” Batwoman greeted, and the Penguin snarled.

“Well, if it ain’t the Bat-Bitch,” he spat, futilely trying to escape his binds. “Now you listen here. Either you let me go this instant, or I will have my men give me your heads on a silver platter.”

“Nah, you see,” Yang said from her position, “we can’t exactly do that. Not when we have a few questions for you. So, be a dear and play nice, alright?”

“Fuck off, blondie!” Penguin shot back, causing Yang to frown. He then felt something press against his head, and he turned to look down Gambol Shroud’s barrel. Instead of showing fear, Cobblepot merely scoffed. “Oh, really now? Gonna point a gun at me, when ya just said you needed me to answer some questions? Sure, pull the trigger. I dare ya. It’ll spare me having to listen to your crap.”

Blake frowned, and pressed the gun further. “Don’t tempt me,” she threatened, but Cobblepot merely rolled his eyes.

“Look, you’re wasting your time,” Cobblepot said. “I don’t care what you say, I ain’t talking. So, how’s about you turn around, go back the way you came, and get the hell out of my bar.”

Batwoman frowned and stood up, preparing to begin the interrogation, only for Yang to calmly step forward and hold up her hand. Silently, the brawler requested to take the lead, and after a moment Batwoman allowed it. With a smile, Yang sat down across from Cobblepot, causing the crime boss to frown in suspicion.

“Hey there,” Yang greeted, crossing her legs.

“Are ya deaf?” Cobblepot asked. “Or just plain ol’ stupid? Perhaps a bit of—”

Suddenly, Yang’s gauntlet shot off, the sound muffled by the music outside as well as an internal suppressor she had attached to it, and a slug plowed through the corner of his chair right next to his head. At once, Cobblepot’s attention swiveled towards it, and with incredulous eyes turned to look at an unapologetic Yang.

“Oh, I’m so sorry about that,” she started, her voice filled with faux regret. “It’s just, like, I’m so stupid that sometimes I forget which one’s the safety, and which one’s the trigger.”

Cobblepot stared at Yang for a few seconds, then his face warped with rage. “Listen, you bimbo! Do that again and I will-!”

Another shot rang out, this time on the other side of his head, and much closer.

“Oops. My bad,” Yang apologized once again. Cobblepot felt a trickle of sweat bead down his brow, realizing that these girls might actually be willing to off him, but he maintained his composure.

“…Now, I’m not gonna say it again,” Cobblepot started, only for Yang to smile and aim her gauntlet down. He followed it, and paled as he realized exactly where it was pointing. “You wouldn’t _dare._ ”

“Try me, Penguin,” Yang started. A heavy, tense silence fell over the pair, each one daring the other to move first in a game of chicken. As the silence went on, Yang thumbed over the trigger, an action Cobblepot couldn’t help but take note off. Each slide over it came with more and more pressure. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Cobblepot had enough.

“Alright! Alright! I’ll talk, just call her off for God’s sake!” Cobblepot demanded. At once, Yang smiled genuinely and collapsed Ember Celica, backing away to let Batwoman retake her seat. As Yang went back to the wall, Batwoman returned to sit in front of the Penguin. At the same time, Yang could’ve sworn that she heard the creaking of wood coming from the side room but ignored it to focus on the interrogation before her.

“Thank you, Oswald. I’m glad we could come to an agreement,” Batwoman said, but the Penguin frowned.

“Get on with it, already,” he replied, not wanting to waste time. “What is it you want to know so badly that you would break into here?”

In response, Batwoman pulled out a series of photographs and pulled over the desk closer to them. She laid the photos across the desk, allowing Cobblepot to look at all of them. He took one glance, then groaned.

“Oh, bloody hell,” he cursed. “This is about what Scarecrow did, ain’t it?”

“Yes,” Batwoman answered, getting straight to the point. “Crane used several hundred thousand dollars-worth of high tech, military grade weaponry from a variety of manufacturers. H&K, ArmaLite, LexCorp, and more. We know you sold them to him.”

“Oh yeah?” Cobblepot tilted his fat head and snarled. “Well, newsflash for ya. You’re wrong. I didn’t sell Scarecrow shit.”

Batwoman narrowed her eyes while Yang scoffed. “Bullshit,” Yang called out.

“Call it whatever ya’ want, it’s true,” Cobblepot insisted. “I didn’t sell those weapons to Crane. Not the ones he used that night, nor any other weapons for the last three fucking years. I consider it professional policy not to sell weapons to complete nutjobs who are just as likely to use them on me as any of you.”

“Forgive me if I find that hard to believe,” Batwoman countered, her patience running thin. “You and I both know you control the arms industry in Gotham. Nothing comes in without your knowledge.”

“You think I don’t know that?” Cobblepot stated, irritated both at the heroes and the subject matter. “Believe me, once I found the boys who went behind my back and smuggled those weapons in for him, I personally fed them to Bruce.”

Yang frowned, disturbed at how callous he sounded about feeding people to a shark. Even if they brought deadly weapons into the city, no one deserved that horrible fate. She could only hope it ended quickly.

Still unconvinced, Batwoman pulled out another picture, this one focused on a symbol engraved into the side of a magazine holder. Cobblepot took one look at the picture, then looked back at Batwoman incredulously.

“ _Really_? Do you honestly think I’d be that stupid as to put my logo on any of my merchandise?”

“You have a theme,” Yang pointed out.

“Yeah, but my guns ain’t freaking billboards!” Cobblepot scoffed.

“You’re being surprisingly open about that,” Blake pointed out, and Cobblepot glared at the Faunus.

“Listen, Catgirl,” Cobblepot said, inadvertently riling Blake up, “selling guns is perfectly legal. Not my fault Gotham’s more unscrupulous individuals tend to get their hands on my goods. You know how lawless some parts of town are.”

Batwoman frowned, knowing that the Penguin struck a nerve against Blake. She stood up and, still not believing his story, suddenly kicked the chair back. With a surprised yell, Cobblepot fell back and hit the ground hard, the back of the chair resting against the wooden floor.

“What the hell?!” Cobblepot shouted as he thrashed about, but Batwoman ignored him.

“Find his archives. I know they’re in here, somewhere,” Batwoman ordered. At once, the heroes fanned out, ignoring Cobblepot’s angry protests as they searched every desk, every book, every computer and every filing cabinet for information. Finally, a collective sigh echoed through the room, and the Penguin smiled victoriously.

“See? I told you. I may be a nasty bloke, but this? I didn’t do it,” Cobblepot declared, and Batwoman clenched her fist.

“Dammit,” she cursed, as did the others. Huffing, Batwoman pressed her fingers up to her cowl, and spoke into it. “Oracle, did you get that?”

“ _I did, unfortunately,_ ” Oracle replied, sighing heavily. “ _Have to admit, this is surprising and a little disappointing. Can you get anything else out of him?_ ”

“No, I don’t think so,” Batwoman admitted, and Penguin’s grin grew wider. Oracle grunted in annoyance, while Yang frowned and walked over to him.

“Any idea who might have smuggled it in?” she asked, but Cobblepot shook his head.

“Blondie, trust me when I say this. No one, and I mean no one, intrudes on my turf and gets away with it. I don’t know who did it, but when I do, heads are going to roll,” he declared, telling Yang all she needed to know.

“Good to know,” she said, then kicked the chair over to rotate it to its side. Penguin squawked in surprise, then grumbled at his uncomfortable position.

“I swear, when I get out of here…” he growled, continuing his thrashing. Then, he felt the ribbon loosen, then completely fall apart. Now untethered to the chair, he fell to the ground ignominiously, then shot to his feet and whirled about. Cobblepot grabbed his umbrella, pointing the end forward as he scanned the room, trying to find any trace of his captors, but found none.

Slowly, Cobblepot felt the fear from the interrogation making way for rage. It was both humiliating and infuriating, and he refused to let it stand. With a snarl, he stormed out of the room, intending to announce their presence over the intercom, only to stop as he heard a pair of heavy footsteps calmly walk towards him.

“Cobblepot,” a deep, guttural voice rumbled. Cobblepot, annoyance etched onto his face, didn’t even turn around to face his would-be business partner.

“Were you there the whole time?” he asked.

“I was.”

“Then why in the hell didn’t you do anything?!” Cobblepot demanded to know.

“Because, señor,” the man said as he stepped out of the shadows, a thick mask covering his face, “one does not catch a bat without bait.”

“Oh, is that what I was?” Cobblepot asked. The man refused to answer, to which Cobblepot huffed. “Doesn’t matter. Look, I don’t care if you came here with a legitimate business proposition or was merely using me from the start. The offer’s still on the table, and if you kill those bitches for me, it’ll be half off.”

From beneath his mask, the man smiled, then extended his large hand outward. Putting aside his umbrella, Cobblepot shook his hand and smiled.

“Hope to see you soon, Bane.”

* * *

 

Batwoman, Blake, and Yang traversed the sewers back the way they came, up until they reached Bruce’s pool. Unwilling to traverse it yet again, lest they invite the massive shark for another snack run, they instead scaled the wall and entered the Iceberg Lounge’s ventilation system. Each step echoed around them, causing Blake to wince as her ears twitched at the racket. Everything else was quiet, but Blake couldn’t help but feel concerned. The three of them just humiliated one of the most powerful crime lords in Gotham, if not the entire country. Getting out was of the utmost priority.

“Can we keep using the air ducts?” she asked, but Batwoman shook her head.

“No. We keep going this way and it’s a dead end,” Batwoman revealed, frowning. “Luckily, there’s an elevator shaft nearby that takes us directly to the top floor, where we can sneak out undetected.”

The others remained silent, until Yang audibly scoffed and cracked her neck. “Well, no use staying in here. The sooner we get out, the better.”

“Agreed,” Batwoman said. Then, using her gauntlet’s spikes, Batwoman gently pulled off the grate and laid it off to the side. She then poked her head through the opening, took a quick look around, and once she confirmed the coast was clear she gracefully lowered herself down. Batwoman fell to the ground, silently landing on the balls of her feet, and one by one the rest of the heroes followed suit.

“Come on, this way.” Batwoman gestured with her hand, telling the heroes to follow her as they walked along the corridor. Blake kept her ears peeled, trying to discern any movement, but to her surprise and alarm found none. She supposed that should have been a good thing, but after what they just did to Cobblepot, she could only imagine what retribution he had planned. Hence why they were so insistent on getting out as fast as possible. Although Blake was confident they could fight their way out if need be, she’d rather avoid a fight altogether.

Finally, they reached the elevator door. Yang opened it, seeing that the car was on their floor. They piled on, Yang closing the door once they were all inside. By the time the Golden Dragon had turned around, Batwoman had already removed a ceiling grate and she and Nightshade were climbing up.

“Come on,” Blake insisted, gesturing towards herself as Batwoman zipped towards the top of the shaft and Catwoman scaled up its scarce footholds. Yang nodded towards her partner and jumped up, grabbing hold of the opening’s edges and pulling herself up. Once she was safely on top of the car, Yang cupped her hands together and sharply tilted her head upward with a smile, telling Blake to continue on while she herself put the grate back. Blake nodded in response, then hopped onto her partner’s offered hands so she could effortlessly catapult her up, the shadowy girl flying up to Batwoman in one go. Yang watched her partner for a moment, then picked up the grate and placed it back where it belonged.

“There we go,” Yang stated, slapping her hands together. “Like it never even—”

Suddenly, the doors chimed open, and Yang threw herself against the pullies, a heavy presence instinctively cautioning her. She heard heavy footsteps enter the car, likely from a large man. The roof prevented her from seeing him, however, so she had no idea who the man could be. Yang tilted her head to look at a suddenly worried Blake, who herself was at the top of the shaft and rapidly gesturing for Yang to hurry up and get over. She nodded back and prepared to zip up to her, only to hear the man suddenly stop pacing. A heavy silence grew, and Yang didn’t even allow herself to breathe.

Then, to her surprise, a massive arm erupted out of the elevator roof next to her prone body. With a yelp, the arm grabbed hold of her and yanked her down, ripping through the roof as though it was tissue paper. Yang slammed onto the ground hard but jumped up to her feet, ready to fight, only to find herself face to face with a large, muscular man wearing a black coat over a black tank top and dark jeans. His head was covered by a black mask, the face outlined in white with only his eyes and mouth showing.

With a wordless yell, Yang threw a haymaker towards the man, only for him to deflect it and punch hard into her gut. Despite her Aura, Yang doubled over and felt the air leave her lungs, leaving her defenseless as the man picked her up and slammed her repeatedly against the walls of the elevator car. Each impact created a large dent, and once the car opened, he violently threw her into the hallway. Her body slammed into a desk, shattering it into splinters, but as she pushed herself off the ground the man calmly strode towards her just as Blake jumped down to assist her. As Blake entered the car, however, the doors slammed shut and the car began to ascend, leaving Yang alone with the man.

“Alright,” Yang said, wiping some saliva from the corner of her mouth while raising her arms, “now you’ve gone and pissed me off.”

“Hmm,” the man grunted, unimpressed. “I had heard that you were temperamental.”

“Oh, I’m more than temperamental right now,” Yang countered, then yelled and charged at the man. She threw a punch towards his head, which he dodged to the side and countered with a jab into her ribs. Grunting, Yang retaliated with a punch to his chest, which connected and sent him sliding back against the wooden floor. Pressing her advantage, Yang charged and slammed into his waist, pushing him back while repeatedly punching into his side. The man grunted with each blow, but then raised his arms up high, clasped his hands together, and slammed them into Yang’s back. The heavy hammer-like blow knocked Yang to the ground, where he effortlessly picked her up, twirled her in a circle, then threw her through a wall and into an adjacent room. A table broke her fall, reduced to nothing more than splinters, but it did little to ease the pain.

“Uggh,” Yang grunted, picking herself up and removing wood chips from her hair. Her eyes were red, but she forced herself to keep focused on him. “So, you must be Bane?”

“Indeed, I am,” Bane answered, calmly walking through the wall and cracking his knuckles. “I must admit, I’m a little disappointed.”

“Oh, I’m not enough for ya?” Yang retorted, raising her fists and extending Ember Celica.

“Not at all. In fact, you are a welcome change in pace,” Bane replied as he hunched over. “No, I had expected the Batman to come here.”

“He’s preoccupied,” Yang spat, grinding her teeth. She then shot a pair of rubber slugs at Bane, who raised his arms to shield himself just as they impacted. He grunted against the pain, but otherwise did nothing before he charged through the hail of slugs. Yang threw a punch towards him as he got close, managing to make contact, but Bane fought through it and grabbed hold of her. He continued his charge, plowing through the wooden wall and into a large open room. At once, a rapturous and rowdy applause filled the air as Yang tumbled, punching Bane repeatedly before he threw her over a wall of metal grates and onto a sheet-metal floor.

“Well, well, well!” a woman started, her voice thick with a Cockney accent. “What do we have here, boys? Looks like fresh meat!”

Once again, a thoroughly annoyed Yang picked herself up and looked around the room. She found herself inside an arena, the walls topped with slanted grates lined with barbed wire. Stacks of tires were scattered around alongside barrels, chairs, and other miscellaneous objects. More pressing, however, was the horde of Penguin goons pounding against the wall with veritable bloodlust. Some held pipes and bats in their hands, while a few armed with rifles stood overhead, ready to fire at a moment’s notice. Yang refused to allow herself to be intimidated, however, and instead focused her attention on Bane, who himself was circling the arena with a stoic expression.

“Oh, I’ll give ya fresh meat,” Yang shouted out, thrusting her arms forward to fire Ember Celica, but to her alarm found them no longer attached to her arms. Surprised, she looked over to Bane, who was tauntingly holding one of them aloft in his hand. Yang growled, then pointed at him. “I’m gonna want that back, Bane.”

“Oy, ya hear that?! She wants her precious toys back!” the Cockney woman mocked, twirling around on the upper edge of the grate while gesturing towards her.

“Yeah, I heard her,” Penguin suddenly announced, making his presence known as he strode into the room, arm clasped around a much taller and admittedly pretty black woman.

“Girl, I’m just gonna say it. You can do so much better,” Yang called out to her, to which she merely laughed and the Penguin snarled.

“Shut ya trap!” Penguin shouted as he sat down, the girl sitting across his lap while he laid his hand across her back. With his other, he pointed his umbrella threateningly towards her, to which Yang frowned.

‘ _I swear, what is it with short criminals wielding weaponized umbrellas? It’s an interstellar plague,_ ’ she thought, but otherwise said nothing and allowed Cobblepot his moment in the spotlight.

“Ya know, I consider myself a pretty generous guy. Had ya come in just wantin’ to talk, I might have just done that. After all, I’m a business man. But after the shit you and your little friends pulled, oy that generosity is long gone. You’re dead, Blondie.”

“Oh, you do care!” Yang taunted, a wide smile on her face while shaking her finger. “Just to let you know, Cobblepot, back then I was bluffing. But when I get out of here, I’m going to make good on my promise.”

“Hah! Like you’ll get the chance!” Oswald Cobblepot laughed hysterically, his goons laughing alongside him while Bane stoically crossed his arms and leaned back against the wall. The Penguin then raised his umbrella over the crowd, sweeping it across the room. “Tracey, whoever kills her gets a hundred-thousand!”

The crowd cheered, while Yang looked offended. “Oh, come on! A hundred-k? You can do better than that!”

Her voice was drowned out by the roar of the crowd as several began to scale the grate. Penguin, the apparently named Tracey, and the black woman smiled wickedly, and as the crowd poured over the side like a wave, Tracey pointed dramatically towards her.

“You heard the boss, boys! Get her!” she ordered, and the men roared and charged her from all sides. Yang, instead of feeling intimidated, smiled and cracked her knuckles and neck before meeting them head-on.

* * *

 

The mission had officially gone belly-up. Probably had as soon as they left Cobblepot. Blake could see that now, although it was obvious with how she was currently firing Gambol Shroud from behind cover at thugs wielding fully-automatic assault rifles alongside Batwoman.

“Where’s Golden Dragon?!” Batwoman shouted over the gunfire, shooting back with her pistol and driving a goon behind cover.

“Some big guy got her!” Blake answered, firing down the other side of the hallway. They were completely boxed in from both sides, a hail of bullets filling the hall both when they were in and out of cover.

“What’d he look like?!” Batwoman asked as she reloaded and continued to fire, downing one of the thugs.

“Don’t know!” Blake broke cover to fire at a thug aiming towards Batwoman’s back. The electrified rounds struck him, causing him to fall to the floor in a spasm, but his comrades pulled him back into cover before Blake could put him down for good. Another fired at her, forcing Blake back.

“Did you see anything?!” Batwoman asked again as Blake reloaded.

“I only saw his back! Some big buy wearing all black and a mask covering his head!”

“Shit!” Batwoman cursed. “That was probably Bane!”

“Aagh!” Blake snarled, continuing to fire as she tried to figure a way out of this mess. She knew who Bane was, and out of all of Batman’s adversaries, he was perhaps one of the most dangerous. Even with her Aura and Semblance, Yang would have a tough time with him, so she needed to get down there. When Gambol Shroud clicked empty once again, Blake went back into cover and reloaded, looking along the roof of the hallway. She saw no obvious routes to take, but when the goons firing on her paused to reload, Blake seized her chance.

Blake broke cover, sprinting as fast as she could down the hallway and throwing Gambol Shroud into the wall behind her attackers. They flinched reflexively, allowing Blake to pull herself towards them. When she neared, she spun and threw out her leg, knocking two on their heads and pulling the chain scythe back towards her. She landed with a roll, using one of her Shadow Clones to absorb a shotgun shell from an opponent. In response, Blake threw two small disks that latched onto his chest, which immediately sent arcs of electricity throughout his entire body. He spasmed to the ground, and soon the strain was too much as he fell into unconsciousness.

“Batwoman!” Blake called out, waving towards her.

“Got it!” Batwoman yelled, throwing down a smoke pellet that filled the hallway. The goons on her end fired wildly into it, but now with their shot’s wide and not having to worry about gunfire coming from both ends, Batwoman broke cover and sprinted towards Blake. The Faunus had already opened a door into the next room for her, allowing Batwoman to easily pass through. They slammed the door shut, then Blake ripped out a chair leg and thrust it between the door’s handlebar, pinning it against the frame. A shot then went through the door right above Blake’s head, causing her to duck.

“Which way do we go?!” Blake asked as she looked around the room for an exit. Unfortunately, there were none, and she cursed.

“ _Working on it!_ ” Oracle yelled out, typing away furiously at her keyboard. As she did, the barred door banged as criminals on the other side tried to break in.

“Well, you better do it fast!” Blake yelled out as she shifted Gambol Shroud into its sword configuration, wielding its cleaver in her other hand. Batwoman, meanwhile, banged her fists together, causing sparks to shoot out as the gauntlet became electrified. Both looked through the wall with their suits’ thermal-optics, where they saw that the criminals were continuing to throw their entire bodies against the door. More had joined them, leaving at least ten heavily armed gunmen waiting for them on the other side.

Silently, Blake took the front, holding both of her blades out in front of her, and the wooden bar cracked.

Then, suddenly, one of the men’s thermal signature disappeared as he was pulled upward into an airduct. It happened so fast, and so silently, none of his comrades noticed. A faint, dark and slender figure that appeared to be female jumped down behind them. Only her head held a thermal signature, the rest of her body obscured from view. Batwoman studied the woman for a moment, then her eyes widened as the mysterious figure pulled out what Blake could only guess was a whip.

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me…” she groaned. Then, just as their assailants prepared to kick down the door, the woman made herself known.

“Hello, boys!” the now-confirmed woman greeted haughtily, causing all of the men to sharply turn their heads towards her.

“Oh, shi-!” one of them yelled as he raised his gun towards her, but the woman struck first with her whip, striking his hand and causing it to fall to the ground. She then pulled him close, spinning him around to where his back was pressed up against her body, his arms pinned above his head by her left arm while she thrust her right fingers to his face. The guns were now facing her but judging by the heartrate Blake’s mask was picking up, she wasn’t scared.

“Well, I see we have ourselves a bit of a predicament, don’t we? Tell you what, how about you big boys drop the guns and I’ll let go of your friend,” the woman said nonchalantly, her smile audible. Blake nodded towards Batwoman, who already began applying explosive gel onto the wall where the biggest clump of criminals was located.

“Forget it, Cat,” one of them snarled, pointedly not the man currently held hostage, who himself was growing terrified. The woman’s head then turned slightly to face the room Blake and Batwoman were about to spring out of, then back at the men.

“Meow,” she mocked, then kicked her hostage towards the criminals before her, spring-boarding away from them in the process. Just as one of his comrades caught him, the wall exploded outward, the concussive force sending many flying to the adjacent wall. Splinters of wood shot forward, causing the few not caught by the blast to cover their eyes and allowing the three women to strike.

Blake pounced on the man closest to her, chopping through his gun with her sheath-cleaver then kicking him in the gut. As he fell to his knees, Blake jumped up and spun vertically, kicking her heel into the side of his head and knocking him into unconsciousness. At the same time, Batwoman pounded her electrified gauntlets against a more heavily armored opponent, her years of military training easily overcoming whatever skills he had picked up on the streets. He tried blocking with his arms, but she simply went around them. She struck his rips repeatedly, a snarl plastered across her face as her red wig flurried wildly from the onslaught. When he finally loosened his defenses from the pain, Batwoman grabbed his collar and socked him across the jaw, sending him reeling back into the wall where he slowly collapsed.

Their mysterious savior, meanwhile, took on two men at once. Both of them had their guns ripped away, but one hastily pulled out a pistol in an attempt to fire on her. The woman simply pulled out her whip and struck the man’s hand with a loud snap, knocking the gun from his fingers and causing him to step back. She pressed her advantage, running towards him before she jumped and delivered a flip-kick into the back of the man’s head, sending him slamming into the ground with a dull thud. He didn’t get up, but her opponent yelled and charged toward her with a raised fist. She ducked underneath, the man’s fist striking against a thick wooden column with a loud thud and faint cracks. He stepped back, clutching his hand in pain while she cartwheeled over, kicking him a few times as she came to a stop. Then, with her claws outstretched, she slashed him a few times, followed by a series of rapid kicks and punches before finally finishing him off with a kick to the head.

The three women breathed heavily, waiting for more to join the fray. But, for the moment, none were forthcoming, allowing all to breathe a sigh of relief.

“Well, I say that turned out—” Before the woman could even finish her sentence, Batwoman grabbed her by the arm and threw her against the wall, pinning her. Blake was shocked, but the woman didn’t seem phased even as Batwoman held her pistol to her head.

“Geez, is that how you treat everybody who helps you out?” she teased, but Batwoman frowned.

“No, this is how I treat people who _use_ us,” Batwoman replied, and the woman shot an offended look.

“Who, me? Who said I was using you?”

Batwoman didn’t respond, only glaring at the apparent criminal, who rolled her eyes and shot Blake a look.

“Military types,” she said with a small shrug. “Think brute force is the way for everything. Me?”

Suddenly, the woman fell to her back, trying to pull Batwoman down with her. Instead, the vigilante released her hold and backed up, only for the woman to slide between her legs and jump up behind her back.

“I prefer a more…subtle approach,” she finished, readjusting the sleeves of her catsuit. Only now did Blake have chance to really look at her. She was wearing a pure black body suit that hugged her slender figure tightly. It appeared to be made out of a leathery substance, one that perfectly masked her body’s thermal signature. A zipper went up the belly and to the neck, whereas the suit continued to cover the back and top of her head. Only her face was exposed and resting on her forehead were a pair of orange-tinted goggles. To Blake’s surprise, on the top of her head were protrusions that looked similar to cat ears, and she suddenly understood exactly who this woman was.

“Selina Kyle?” Blake guessed, and Selina smiled and gave a bow.

“Catwoman, master cat-burglar and thief extraordinaire,” Selina introduced herself, and Blake frowned. Batwoman, meanwhile, continued to point her pistol towards her.

“What are you doing here, Selina?” Batwoman asked as the men around her groaned. They took a quick glance, and Catwoman frowned.

“Seriously, Kate? Do we really need to do this, now?” she asked, gesturing towards the fallen men around her. Blake’s eyes widened at the casual use of Batwoman’s real name, but the vigilante herself didn’t seem alarmed, which surprised the Faunus more than anything. Batwoman looked ready to counter that, only for Catwoman to continue, “Especially when your friend is downstairs facing _hordes_ of criminals?”

At once, both Blake’s and Batwoman’s eyes widened in alarm, and Catwoman nodded.

“Where is she?” Blake snarled, stepping towards the thief, but Catwoman held up her hands placatingly.

“In Penguin’s arena, two floors down. I saw Bane throw her in.”

“And you didn’t think to help her?” Batwoman accused, but Catwoman shot her a genuinely insulted look.

“Why do you think I’m here? I may be good, but not even I can take on over fifty men at once. At least.”

A heavily silence ensued between them, then Batwoman frowned and holstered her gun. Catwoman nodded, understanding the message, then began to run down the hallway.

“Follow me, I know a shortcut downstairs.”

Blake and Batwoman nodded and ran after her. As they did, Blake couldn’t help but worry about her partner. She knew Yang was stronger than anyone she knew, especially around here, but the thought of Yang facing off against scores of criminals created a pit in her stomach. At the same time, she wondered exactly what Selina Kyle was in the Iceberg Lounge for, as well as why she looked vaguely familiar.

Blake shook those thoughts out of her head. Right now, she only needed to focus on Cobblepot and Bane. Whatever they were planning, Blake knew they were going to regret it.

* * *

 

“Hi-yah!” Yang shouted as she punched another thug far away from her. Despite her current predicament, her boisterous smile never once left her face. Why should it, when around her were dozens of incapacitated and knocked out criminals? They’d tried their best, Yang had to admit, but in the end, it turned out that years of combat training with some of the best teachers from two worlds easily trumped their haphazard attempts.

“Come on! Is that all you got?!” Yang shouted as the last remaining criminals poured over the grate. They were much more nervous now, knowing just what Yang was capable off.

“Goddammit! Someone kill this bitch already!” Penguin shouted from his perch, thoroughly enraged. Bane remained leaning against the wall, studying Yang’s every movement with a calculating eye. Unlike the rest of Penguin’s men, he wouldn’t rush in until he knew as much as he could.

“Yeah! I mean, the guy who puts me down gets a neat million! Maybe more! Personally, I think I could go for a nice five million, maybe even ten.”

“Shut up!”

“Come down and make me! Pfft,” Yang blew a raspberry, enjoying how riled up he was getting. As she did, a criminal ran towards her, wielding a baseball bat. He swung towards her head, but she sharply turned around and caught it in the palm of her hand. With a wicked smile, she tore the blunt object from him and whacked him across the body hard enough for the wood to crack and splinter. A crack was heard as the bone shattered and the man screamed, but Yang paid him no heed as she tossed the ruined remains away.

“Who’s next?” she asked while twirling around, her arms outstretched. “Come on! Don’t leave me hanging!”

“Why you cheeky little-! Oy, bozos!” Cobblepot pointed at the gunmen overhead. “What cha’ standing there for! Shoot her already!”

“Got it, boss!” the men answered without question, flicking off their safeties and aiming their guns. Yang recognized them as an assortment of submachine guns, assault rifles, and even a sniper rifle, but Yang was focused on the man clearly holding a shotgun.

“Finally,” she muttered, then ran as the gunfire sounded. Bullets pinged against the metal floors and walls, sparks shooting all around her, but she kept going. A few struck her body, but her Aura kept it from doing any real damage. Still hurt, though, and with gritted teeth she reached her objective: a stack of tires the fighting had dislodged earlier. She picked up one with a single arm, looping it through the hole, then spun in a full circle. At the end of her spin, she released the tire, sending it hurtling towards the surprised shotgunner, who flew back as the rubber projectile crashed into his chest. She heard the crack of a rib, but she was already on the move as he fell over his perch and towards the ground. Yang deftly caught him with one hand, the other catching his shotgun.

“Ooh, a Mossberg 500. Nice taste,” she admired the weapon before diving out of the way of a sniper shot. As she did, she quickly pumped the weapon, expelling all of the 12-gauge rounds before loading her own shock slugs in their stead. Once she was fully loaded, she pumped the weapon and aimed at the gunner closest to her.

“Oh, shi-!” he yelled just as Yang fired, striking his chest with an electrified slug. He spasmed to the ground, and with growing alarm the others could barely react as Yang shot each in rapid succession. None of her shots missed, and before long the gunfire stopped.

Yang looked around the silent arena, as though daring anyone to stand up again. None were forthcoming, either completely incapacitated or too scared to try anything.

“Gods damn,” Yang finally said, dramatically pumping her shotgun, “I love being me.”

Cobblepot looked down on Yang with unmasked fury. There she stood, standing on a pile of his men, wielding one of his shotguns as a trophy. Then, as though it was icing on the cake, Yang propped the shotgun on her shoulder and, with her free hand, extended a middle finger. Cobblepot’s face was turning red from an intense rage, a feeling shared by Tracey. The young Cockney woman picked up a sledge hammer and, with a roar, leapt from her perch down onto the arena.

“You’re gonna regret ever stepping foot in-!” Tracey didn’t get the chance to finish her sentence as Yang merely slammed the butt of her shotgun across her face, sending the girl flying back and into the wall. She slumped over into unconsciousness, and Yang shook her head and clicked her mouth.

“Shame,” Yang stated before looking back at an infuriated Cobblepot. She then turned her attention towards Bane and stared him down. A heavy silence fell over them, which only ended when Yang threw the shotgun off to the side and held out her arms. “Well, I’m still here. What are you waiting for?”

For the first time since she saw him, Bane smiled as he got off the wall and made his way towards her.

“Oh, so _now_ you decide to jump in!” Cobblepot complained, but Bane ignored him. Instead, he began to take off his coat, revealing a series of tubes that ejected out of a pack on his upper back that flowed into his arms and legs.

“I must admit, señorita, you’ve impressed me,” Bane allowed as he pressed a button on his chest. A green fluid slowly flowed through the tubes and into his body, causing his muscles to swell and his veins to turn a shade of green.

‘ _Venom,_ ’ Yang thought, keeping an eye on the tubes. She knew what the substance was, a highly addictive narcotic that functioned as a steroid. A powerful steroid, one that bestowed its users with incredible strength.

“Well, I aim to impress,” Yang replied as Bane calmly walked across the grates.

“Indeed,” Bane said as he jumped down, the objects in the arena shaking from the impact. “But I’m afraid I must break you. Like I did to the Batman.”

“Ah, that’s a shame. And I was just beginning to like you,” Yang teased as she leaned forward, her arms raised in preparation for the fight to come. Bane smirked and leaned forward as well, his arms hunkered to the side. The two fighters circled each other, taking care not to trip on one of the fallen bodies. Then, as though a silent signal was sent, the two roared and charged at each other.

Both struck their faces at the same time, each reeling back from the mutual blows. Yang recovered first, following up with a punch to his gut. In response, Bane threw a punch into Yang’s side, the venom increasing his strength enough to send her flying back into a pile of tires.

“Oohh,” she groaned, wincing and holding her side as she pushed herself up. “Gonna feel that in the morning.”

Bane didn’t say a word as he walked towards her, ignoring a tire rolling past him. Yang got up, but instead of charging forward, picked up a tire and threw it at him. He blocked it with his veiny arm then continued at a slightly faster pace, seeming to enjoy the slow march to inevitability. However, rather than change tactics, Yang threw another tire at Bane, then another, and before long she was like a tire machine gun. Projectile after projectile slammed into Bane, who was forced to stop his advance to block it with his arms. His vision obstructed, Yang threw the last tire then lunged towards Bane. Just as he opened his arms to see, Yang struck him in the face, sending him reeling back.

Pressing her advantage, Yang circled around him and struck the side of his knee, sending him to the ground. She punched the back of his head, and as he was dazed, she grabbed hold of one of the tubes pumping venom into him. She pulled, and after a slight resistance the tube forcibly pried from Bane’s body, the green fluid squirting out as the tube itself shook violently.

“No!” Bane shouted as he recovered, rising to his feet and hurling Yang away with a slap of his arm. Yang rolled against the ground, sliding to a stop on her hands and feet, and watched as Bane futilely tried to stem the flow of venom. She frowned, recognizing the actions of an addict when she saw it. Bane truly was addicted to venom, and despite all of the vast strength it offered him, she knew it would also be his undoing.

Now visibly enraged, Bane charged towards Yang once again. Yang charged back, hunkered low in order to avoid his obvious attacks. Bane swung his arm towards Yang from the top, who jumped to the side in order to avoid it. As she did, however, his other arm slammed upward into her gut, lifting her off the ground and knocking the air from her lungs. At the zenith of her arc, Bane grabbed hold of her leg and slammed her hard into the metal floor, lifted her up, then did it again. Yang began seeing stars with each impact, but finally Bane had enough and hurled her away. She spun in the air and hit the ground, rolling along her side and to a stop.

Yang shook her head and rose to her feet, but had to hastily dive out of the way as Bane slammed into the wall where she just stood. The sheet metal dented, but Bane himself looked no worse for wear. Yang was forced to dodge again as Bane slammed his fist down at her, denting the floor slightly. When she landed, Yang lunged forward, knocking Bane’s head back with an uppercut. She then grabbed hold of his waist and, with a mighty shout, lifted him off the ground and above her head, then slammed him onto the ground face first behind her. Yang quickly recovered, rolling to the side and grabbing hold of both tubes pumping venom into Bane’s legs, then pulled them loose. The green fluid sprayed back and forth, a few drops landing on her yellow costume while most pooled around him.

“No, no!” Bane shouted as he clawed at the drug, then forced himself to take a deep breath and stood up. Slowly, he turned to face Yang, anger filling his eyes while Yang stepped slightly back.

“Listen, Bane,” Yang started, attempting to calm him down as exhaustion began to take root within herself. Even if he was her enemy, she didn’t like to see anyone like this. “That venom you’re pumping into yourself? It’s appropriately named. It’s a poison, and it’s going to destroy you.”

“I know it is, luchadora,” Bane replied, flexing his muscles. “And as much as I hate my dependence on it, right now I’ll gladly accept its costs.”

Yang’s eyes widened slightly, then steeled herself. It was obvious now that there was truly no talking him down, but deep down she already knew that. Still, it didn’t hurt to try, even if she ultimately knew it was futile. She craned her neck with an audible pop, while Bane cracked his knuckles. Then, the two charged each other once again, converging into a brawl. Each threw powerful punches at their opponent, wanting to put them down as quickly as possible but neither relenting.

Bane grabbed hold of Yang across her back and held her close to his chest. He then began to squeeze, and Yang felt his powerful, venom-infused muscles constrict around her. She bit back a scream, then slammed her forehead into his jaw. Not expecting the attack, Bane loosened his grip, allowing Yang to push against him with her legs and launch herself back. She landed with a roll, then dived out of the way as Bane charged her yet again. When she got to her feet and turned, however, she suddenly saw the end of a tire being hurtled towards her face, and she barely had enough time to even attempt a block. The rubber slammed into her nose, and Yang stumbled black, allowing Bane to close the distance.

Yang couldn’t even try to get out of the way before he was on her. Bane grabbed her shoulder with one hand then gut-punched her with the other. As she doubled over, the villain grabbed her other shoulder then slammed his knee into her gut, followed by clasping her head and bringing it down to a rising knee. Again Yang stumbled back, but she could barely take a few steps before Bane yanked her back by the arm and clotheslined her. She flipped from the attack, landing on her back with a thud. With a scowl on his face, Bane grabbed Yang then violently threw her against the ground with enough force to dent it, forming a small crater around Yang’s body.

Bane breathed heavily, then relaxed as Yang tried to push herself up. As she did, Bane calmly walked towards her, a noticeable limp in his stride.

“It’s over, señorita,” Bane declared before lifting Yang up by the back of her jacket. “Now I must break you as well.”

He held her high overhead, her face towards the ceiling. Bane then yelled and threw her down back-first into a rising knee. Yang screamed as pain shot through her spine, but her Aura still held as a yellow sheen flickered dangerously. She heard Bane walk away as Cobblepot began to laugh victoriously, but that stopped as Yang forced herself to her feet. Bane turned around, surprised at her resilience, then frowned.

“Stay down!” he yelled, throwing another punch at her head, only for Yang to catch it without even looking. Shock crossed Bane’s face, and he tried to rip it free, but found himself unable to do so.

“You know,” Yang began, her head facing down and blonde locks obscuring her face, “I’m not stupid. Some people like to think I am, but I’m not. I knew _exactly_ what you were doing up there. You were studying me, trying to find out my combat style while Penguin’s goons wore me down. All so you could beat me.”

Bane frowned then threw another punch at Yang, who caught it just as easily as the first. His eyes widened as her hair began to glow and embers started coming off of it.

“But here’s the thing, Bane,” Yang smiled and shot her face up so he could stare into her blazing red eyes. “I’m more than meets the eye.”

Yang suddenly pushed Bane back violently, the villain sliding back on his feet as Yang pounded her fists together. As soon as she did, her body became alight in fire, an intense heat that even Cobblepot could feel. She shouted before rocketing towards Bane, who attempted to block just as Yang’s fist made contact. First, he heard a crack as his arm was broken on impact, then he felt his feet leave the ground. A veritable explosion rippled from where Yang’s fist made contact, and the last thing Bane saw before everything went black was the metal wall of the arena filling his vision

The impact of Bane’s body caused the wall to split apart, exposing a pathway into the stands above. As Yang calmly walked through the opening, she went over to Bane to retrieve her weapons. A quick look through her mask showed that, although he was heavily injured, he was still alive. The same could be said for every other criminal around her, and she nodded to herself as she walked up to Penguin. The criminal was picking himself off his feet, his female companion trying to crawl away, and Yang announced her presence by cracking her knuckles.

“Hey, Cobblepot,” Yang said as Penguin rose to his full stance. He took one look at her, then yelled defiantly as he raised his umbrella and fired it, revealing the weapon to be a machine gun. He only got a few shots off, which bounced off Yang’s gauntlets before she ripped the weapon from his hands and broke it in half. She then kicked him away, the short, rotund man flying into the remains of his chair and shattering it.

“Gagh!” he screamed as he rolled around in pain, but any sympathy Yang might have had towards him was long gone. She walked up to him, a deep scowl etched across her face, then slammed her foot down onto his gut while aiming Ember Celica towards his face.

“Now then, here’s what’s going to happen,” Yang started, her voice completely serious. “Something tells me you didn’t tell us everything in your room, that you know something else that you wanted to keep close to your chest. That ain’t gonna fly. So, either you tell me what I want to know, or I start shooting. Understand?”

Cobblepot glared at Yang, who only tilted her head and wordlessly loaded a shell in response. He then took one look around the shattered remains of his arena, then sighed.

“Fine, you daft twit. Candy, be a dear and give her what she wants,” he ordered, and Yang looked at the black woman with a raised eyebrow.

“Candy? Tell me that’s not your real name,” Yang asked, and Candy sighed.

“It’s short for Candace,” she replied.

“Oh good, cuz’ I was getting worried. Anyway, you got something for me?” Yang requested, holding out her arm while keeping sure to point Ember Celica towards her. Candy gulped, then reached into her pocket and pulled out a small flash drive. Yang took it, holding the USB up to her eyes as Penguin began to explain.

“I had my boys track where the smugglers came from,” Penguin revealed. “Was about to look at it when you lot showed up and ruined everything.”

“I take it whatever was in this stick was the deal you wanted with Bane?” Yang asked, and Cobblepot nodded.

“Yea, we were gonna go in and wipe ‘em out together in exchange for a large lump sum and easier access to my goods. Cuz no one, and I mean no one, messes on my turf and gets away with it.”

“Good to know,” Yang said as she took her foot off Cobblepot and walked away, then pressed her finger to her ear as she inspected the USB more closely. “Oracle, you in?”

Static filled the comm, and Yang sighed, figuring that they were too far underground to get a signal. She shrugged, knowing there would be time to contact her.

“You know what,” she figured as she eyed the arena one last time then went back in, grabbing the discarded shotgun from earlier, “I’m keeping this.”

“Oy! You can’t steal from me!” Cobblepot shouted as Candy helped him up, but Yang shrugged, honestly not caring.

“You’re a criminal, and I’d say I earned it after what you just pulled.” She walked out of the arena, preparing to exit out the hole she entered from, then paused and tapped her lips. Yang felt like she was forgetting something, then snapped her fingers as she remembered what it was.

“Oh, yeah,” she stated, then turned around and walked back to Cobblepot. She stared down at him, smiling innocently. He took a moment to register her threat from before, then his eyes widened.

“Don’t you da-!”

Yang kicked upward. It was more of a tap than anything, yet that didn’t make it hurt any less as he crumpled to the floor in pain with a wordless scream while Candy looked on in shock.

“Told ‘ya I was gonna do that,” Yang pointed out, then waved two fingers at them and calmly walked out. “Ciao!”

With a victorious smile on her face, Yang walked out of the hole in the wall and back to the elevator she had come down in. She thought about taking it but figured the damage Bane must have caused would make the car unstable, and so turned to walk up the stairs. Just as she did, the doors to the stairwell burst open as Blake, Batwoman, and a third woman ran out with their weapons drawn. They were clearly expecting a fight but were surprised to see Yang walking about with a shotgun over her shoulder.

“Oh, hey guys. What’s up? Also, who’s she?” Yang asked as the three women looked at her, first in surprise then in relief.

“Dragon, are you alright?” Batwoman asked, to which Yang shrugged.

“Eh, I’m fine. You should see the other guy. Speaking of, can you guys call the cops? Cannot get a signal down here.”

“They’re already outside,” Blake revealed as Catwoman walked through the hole in the wall to look at the remains on the arena.

“Holy-! What happened here?!” Catwoman asked, to which Yang smiled.

“Just me being awesome!” she declared, which caused Blake to slap her forehead while Batwoman smirked. “Also, again: who are you and why are you here?”

* * *

 

“JUST YOU WAIT, BLONDIE! WHEN I GET OUTTA HERE, YOU’RE A DEAD WOMAN! YOU HEAR ME?!” Cobblepot shouted at the top of his lungs, though at a slightly higher pitch than normal, as police officers forced him into an armored car while Bane was loaded onto an ambulance.

“Yeah, yeah. I don’t think she cares,” Renee Montoya stated as she slammed the door shut, banging on the side of the car to signal the driver. At once the vehicle sped off, leaving Officer Montoya behind alongside Batwoman, Blake and Yang, who themselves were talking to Commissioner Gordon.

“Over a hundred arrests, including two major crime bosses, one of which had to be hospitalized,” Gordon read off. “And that’s on top of the several hundred thousand dollars-worth of property damage to the Lounge itself. You never cease to make things boring, do you?”

“My apologies, Commissioner,” Blake said. “It was not our intention for our investigation to get as hot as it did.”

“Be that as it may, I’m grateful,” Gordon replied while his partner, Harvey Bullock, scoffed.

“It’s not like we needed it. We were already investigating the bastard. Had you just waited a few days, we could’ve done it ourselves,” Bullock insisted. Instead of putting him down, Yang smiled genuinely and nodded.

“I know you could, Detective. Just thought we’d land a hand,” Yang insisted. Bullock huffed, still not satisfied but he would take it. As much as he disliked the fact that the GCPD had to rely on these costumed vigilantes, he had come to accept the reality years ago.

“We’ll compile all the evidence we can, then hand it off to the DA,” Gordon continued, turning away to flip through his folder of evidence. “Then we can—”

He turned around, but as he expected, the heroes were gone. Or rather, Batwoman and the other darkly dressed girl had already vanished on cue, while the more brightly dressed hero was standing there and aiming a bemused look up in the direction they’d supposedly gone. She turned and gave him an apologetic smile and shrug, before grappling up to the nearby rooftops as well with a jaunty wave goodbye. He sighed, shaking his head, while Bullock frowned.

“Always hated it when they did that,” Bullock complained, and Gordon patted his shoulder.

“You get used to it.”

“I know, and that’s why I hate it.”

The two men bickered as only years-long partners could do as they walked back to the assembled squad cars. Meanwhile, above on a rooftop the women crouched on the roof’s edge, overlooking the entire Iceberg Lounge.

“Tell me,” Yang started, a frown on her face. “How long can we expect him and Bane to stay in jail?”

“Penguin’s bought off enough judges,” Batwoman answered, a frown on her face, “not to mention a few politicians, so his sentence will probably be more lenient than it has any right to be. As for Bane, don’t know. He’s broken out before, usually when we were otherwise preoccupied.”

Yang frowned, clenching her fist tightly. The corruption Batwoman was describing infuriated her, but unlike punching an army of goons or taking down mob bosses, there wasn’t much she could do there. She knew Batman and good cops like Gordon, Montoya, and Bullock were doing their best, but it was becoming obvious just how corrupt Gotham truly was.

“Hey, don’t get upset,” Batwoman stated, putting her hand on Yang’s shoulder. “What we did today was a victory. Every little bit counts towards making this city better.”

“I know, but it’s…frustrating,” Yang admitted, to which Batwoman nodded in agreement. She looked back down, staring at Renee Montoya as the GCPD officer looked around for a bit more then glanced up at her general direction. The two women stared at each other for a split second, but to both it seemed like an eternity. Past regrets built up in Batwoman, and the look on Renee’s face told she was feeling the same. Then, without a word being said, Renee got into her squad car just alongside Bullock and Gordon, then drove off. Batwoman watched the car leave, which Yang noticed but didn’t say anything about. She recognized that look anywhere and knew better than to dig up old wounds.

“Oracle, did you get the data?” Blake asked while Catwoman sat on a shack over her, hanging her leg off the edge and swaying it back and forth.

“ _I did,_ ” Oracle answered. “ _It’ll take me a while to go through it all, but if I combine this with the data from Jump City… Yeah, I think we can get somewhere with this. Nice work._ ”

“You can thank Golden Dragon. She’s the one who got it out of him,” Blake responded, and out of the corner of her eye she saw Yang flash a thumbs up.

“ _Right. In any case, I’m sending the Batwing to come pick you guys up. Red Reaper, Ivory Mage, and Robin are already in there._ ”

“Any word on the others?”

“ _Still no sign of Spoiler, Red Robin, Verdant Lotus or Pink Lightning, but I’ll keep trying to raise contact with them. As for the others, their infiltration is still ongoing. Will update as soon as I receive word._ ”

“Sounds good. We’re ready for extraction.” Blake declared, then signed off the comms. She turned to face Catwoman, and the thief looked down on her with a smile. Selina then laid her belly across the roof of the shack, resting her chin on her hand.

“So, you’re the famous Catwoman?” Yang greeted, placing her hands on her hips.

“Yep,” Catwoman responded with a wry smile. Yang nodded, then looked back at Kate.

“Apparently, I owe you some thanks,” Yang noted, but Catwoman shook her head.

“Not really. Besides, it looked like you had it handled.”

“Hence the apparently,” Yang joked back, and Catwoman smiled before jumping off. “Still, thank you for helping t hem.”

“Don’t mention it,” Selina replied, then stood up and jumped down to join them. “So, as much as I would like to stay and chat, I must get going. I have a party to attend to.”

All three heroes narrowed their eyes at her, but soon relented. After the help she provided, they could afford to give her some benefit of the doubt. They nodded towards her and prepared to turn back, only for them to notice that Catwoman hadn’t yet left.

“Oh, by the way. Meant to ask this earlier but it didn’t seem like the right time,” Catwoman began.

Blake raised an eyebrow, noticing that the thief was looking at her, then shrugged. “Sure, go right ahead. Good a time as any.”

“What exactly are you called? Your alias, I mean? I already know Kate’s and I’m guessing blondie is Golden Dragon, but I didn’t hear yours yet,” Catwoman asked. Blake thought a moment, then nodded after seeing no harm in answering the question. Before she could answer, Catwoman continued. “Wait, let me guess. You’re Black Cat?”

Blake stared blankly at Catwoman and shook her head. “No.”

“Cat-Girl?”

“ _No_.”

“…Ninja Kitty?”

“Hah!” Yang laughed and shook her head at Catwoman’s suggestion. “Oh, I’m gonna remember that one.”

“So, I take it that’s not it?” Catwoman asked, and Blake glared at the thief.

“No. I’m not named after a cat,” Blake growled. “My name is Nightshade.”

“Really? Like the plant? Huh, I would have thought, with the very realistic cat ears and all, that you were going for a cat-theme.”

“They’re not fake,” Blake refuted, prompting Catwoman to raise her eyebrows.

“What? Yes they are.”

“Oh, they’re real,” Batwoman insisted. Surprised, Catwoman turned her head around to look at the twitching ears more closely.

“… Huh,” Catwoman finally said. “Gotta admit, my mind’s drawing a blank here. Closest thing I’ve ever seen to a cat girl before was Cheetah, and you look nothing like her”

Blake rolled her eyes then turned around. She prepared to call Oracle yet again, only to feel some fingers gingerly pet her cat ears, causing Blake to go still.

“ _They’re so soft…_ ” Catwoman cooed, even as Blake craned her neck to glare at Catwoman. The two stared at each other for a few moments, and Blake was about to slap her hand away when Catwoman finally got the message and removed her hand. She held it up placatingly and awkwardly smiled. “Sorry, couldn’t resist.”

Blake gritted her teeth and glared a few more seconds at Catwoman while Yang pursed her lips in disapproval.

“You don’t have much respect for personal boundaries, do you?” the blonde asked as her eyes flashed red for a second.

“What? Well no, that comes with being a thief, but I don’t see what the big deal is here.” Selina seemed honestly baffled by the hostility.

“So, you’re saying that you’d be fine if I started caressing _your_ ears from out of nowhere?” she arched a golden eyebrow. “I’ve decked more than one stranger who thought they could just reach over and paw at my hair out of ‘admiration’. Even more than that, you can’t just start messing with the animal features of a Faunus you’ve just met without their permission, that’s-!”

“I’m sorry, ‘Faunus’?”

Blake took a calming breath at the reminder that they weren’t on Remnant anymore, and that this person had no context to realize how _offensive_ her impulsive petting had been. How could she, when they had taken careful steps to keep everything about them a secret?

“It’s fine, Dragon. Forget about it.” Blake shot her partner a thankful smile for speaking up about it, instead of considering it a bit of harmless fun. She then looked towards a still slightly confused Catwoman, who locked eyes with her. Slowly, realization began to dawn on the thief, and a look of mortification fell across her.

“Oh god, I am so—” she began, but Blake waved her off.

“It’s fine, you didn’t know.”

“Still, I shouldn’t have—”

“It’s fine,” Blake said more pointedly. Selina clammed up, then sighed and shook her head. Yang looked at the two for a moment, then sighed and shook her head as well. It was obvious to everyone now that Catwoman crossed a major line, but at the very least the thief was genuinely remorseful. Not to mention, as Blake figured, she didn’t know. It was hard to remain angry at that.

“Well, as much as I’d like to stay and chat, I must be going.” Selina apparently decided to retreat from the whole awkward affair as she walked towards the end of the rooftop. Before she reached the edge, however, she stopped and looked over her shoulder. “By the way, when you see Bruce, tell him I said hi.”

Again, Blake and now Yang felt their eyes widen in surprise, but before either of them could ask for clarification the Catwoman was gone, having leapt off the building and using her whip as a swing. Yang and Batwoman rejoined Blake as they watched her leave, then both turned to face a resigned Batwoman.

“She used us as bait at first to rob the Penguin, didn’t she?” Blake bluntly asked, and Batwoman nodded.

“Probably. Then her conscience got the better of her,” Batwoman added. Blake nodded at this. From her admittedly brief introduction to the Catwoman, she was a criminal, but one with a strong moral compass. Still, she didn’t like being used like that, even if she helped them at the end.

“Uh, I have a question,” Yang started. “Meant to ask while she was here, actually, but… Just how close is she to you guys?”

“She’s a tentative ally, depending on the situation,” Batwoman answered, her eyes half closed.

“Yeah, I figured that, but… How close is she to Batman? I mean, she knows his real name.” Yang clarified, to which Batwoman refused to answer. Yang narrowed her eyes at her, then they suddenly widened. “No. You’re kidding me!”

Batwoman remained silent, then sighed and shook her head. “Batman and Catwoman have a…complicated yet intimate relationship.”

Both huntresses took a moment to process, then both reacted. Yang began to laugh hysterically, forgetting her annoyance towards Selina Kyle, while Blake blushed and thought back to her favorite book series, one of which had a plotline very reminiscent of what was apparently unfolding before her. A strong knight, a seductive thief. Both trying to bring the other to their side of the law as passions flare between them. The resemblance was uncanny.

“Oh, that _dog_! Wait, that’s even better cause she’s a _cat_! Haha!”

“Glad you’re finding amusement from it,” Batwoman stated as they heard the whine of the Batwing coming towards them. Yang laughed some more, wiping a tear from her eye as the aircraft began to descend.

“Okay, okay I’m good.” As the Batwing’s ramp descended, showing Ruby, Weiss, and Damian waiting for them inside, Yang began to walk, only to suddenly wobble. Blake was on her immediately, concern etched on her face, but Yang waved her off.

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” she said, her voice sounding much more tired than just a few moments ago. “I think the…adrenaline is…finally wearing off…”

Blake could only watch as Yang drifted off to sleep right in her arms, her feet dragging against the ramp. The Faunus sighed, then with a smiling Ruby’s help, gently placed Yang on a chair and strapped her in. Batwoman didn’t get on the Batwing, instead waving them off as she prepared to leave on her own, and Blake waved back as the ramp closed. The Batwing then lifted off, flying through the night towards the Batcave once again.

“So,” Ruby started, bouncing up and down on her chair. “How’d the mission go?”

“And why do you smell like a sewer?” Weiss demanded, sidling way from the two huntresses alongside Damian. Even Ruby, despite her cheerfulness, was inching away from them, although much more subtly.

“Pretty good, actually, despite a hiccup. Took down the—”

Blake was interrupted by a loud snore, coming straight from Yang. Everyone inside the aircraft stared at her, while the blonde herself remained oblivious and continued to saw logs. Seeing the question on Robin’s face, Ruby turned to face him.

“Yeah, she does that,” Ruby said, punctuated by another unladylike snort courtesy of Yang. As the snooze fest continued, the group couldn’t help but laugh.

[~][~]


	30. Bonds Forged in Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jaune, Pyrrha, Red Hood and Batgirl infiltrate a recruitment drive for Black Mask, only to uncover a deeper conspiracy against Gotham.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 22: Bonds Forged In Fire **

[~][~]

 

“Guardian and I are staking out Black Mask,” Jaune said as he, Pyrrha, Red Hood, and Batgirl crouched on top of a tenement, overlooking a small assortment of suspicious-looking men. “There hasn’t been an opening yet, but we have some ideas.”

 

As he said this, Jaune glanced over to Red Hood, who quickly nodded back. Jaune responded in kind, then turned his attention back to the criminals they were looking over.

 

“ _Got it. Try not to do something stupid, alright?_ ” Ruby joked, and Jaune groaned.

 

“I know, I know,” Jaune emphasized, then paused to glance at Pyrrha. She was lying prone, the barrel of Miló slightly exposed over the rooftop. She had no need for a scope, her helmet providing all the magnification she needed. Despite not being able to see her face, Jaune knew she was smiling in amusement.

 

“Dragon,” Jaune continued, “how are things on your end?”

 

“ _We just entered the Lounge now,_ ” Yang answered, an obvious smirk on her face. “ _Geez, I know B-man said this place was considered high class, but I’ve never seen so many stuffed up rich people in one place before. Ivory, does this remind you of anything?_ ”

 

“ _Grrgh,_ ” Weiss growled.

 

“ _Heh-heh. Seriously though, we’ll let you guys know once we get more information. Just gotta figure out how to get the Penguin to squawk.”_

 

“ _I’m sure you’ll figure something out,_ ” Ruby stated. “ _Lotus, how are things on your end?_ ”

 

“ _Going well, nothing to report yet,_ ” Ren spoke up. “ _We’re currently trying to figure out a way inside. Shouldn’t be too long._ ”

 

“ _Got it._ ” Jaune then heard a shuffle coming from Ruby’s end. “ _Have to go. We got a lead._ ”

 

“Got it, Reaper. We’ll contact you later,” Jaune responded, as did the other members on the line. Soon the transmissions clicked off, leaving Jaune alone with his current team. Of course, he couldn’t really say it was his team. Red Hood had taken charge of the entire situation, given his experience, so Jaune would readily follow his lead.

 

“I’m not surprised Ruby and her team are ahead of us,” Pyrrha noted, still in her prone position.

 

“Why? Because they’re going after the Riddler or because it’s Ruby?” Jaune asked, and Pyrrha giggled.

 

“Both, really.” A comfortable silence fell over the two as they continued to watch over the five criminals. They were meeting inside of an old, dilapidated yet still inhabited apartment building. The windows were brown and musty, several of them boarded with plywood, and the fire escapes were lined with crimson rust. Jaune couldn’t imagine just who’d want to even live in such a state, but he supposed that was the point. Likely no one wanted to live in such squalor, but they simply didn’t have a choice in the matter. Inside the meeting room itself, situated on the top floor with a boarded-up skylight in the center of the room, the four heroes were looking through the walls via thermal imagining, and Red Hood had shot a sound amplifier to pick up what they were discussing.

 

“ _So, do you have it?_ ” one of the criminals asked, his outline suggesting he was wearing a thin suit and fedora, akin to a businessman or classic gangster. They pegged him as one of Black Mask’s men, so they kept most of their attention focused squarely on him.

 

“ _Yeah, I do,_ ” one of the others answered. He was wearing much dirtier and bulkier attire, ones that didn’t quite fit him judging by the gap the clothes left between them and his skin. What was more curious was the case he was holding, which he plopped onto a table with a heavy grunt. “ _Here. Now the money._ ”

 

Instead of offering the cash as requested, the nicely-suited criminal huffed and calmly rotated the briefcase towards him. He unlatched the lock, the sound echoing across the room and into the embedded amplifier, then hummed as he inspected the contents.

 

“ _There, ya see. Five kilos of cocaine, as requested._ ” The second criminal held out his hand expectantly, clearly irritated. “ _Now, the money._ ”

 

“ _Just wait, friend. Gotta make sure this ain’t been tampered with. My boss expects a certain level of quality for his merchandise, you see,_ ” Black Mask’s goon responded, holding up his hand placatingly. Jaune couldn’t help but note that his other hand was kept close to his side, as were the other two criminals behind him.

 

“Hood, this is about to get bad,” Jaune noted, seeing all the signs of an impending drug deal gone wrong.

 

“I know,” Red Hood responded, crouching and combining his pistols into a rifle. “Get ready. Guardian, fire when I say so.”

 

“On it,” Pyrrha said, flicking the safety off as a scope extended from Red Hood’s rifle. An infrared laser was highlighted along Pyrrha’s HUD, as it was on Jaune’s and Batgirl’s, and they quickly cycled between the targets through the windows.

 

“Batgirl, come on,” Jaune told his silent comrade. Batgirl nodded before pulling out a grappling hook, then zipped over to a water tower on the building’s roof. Jaune followed after her, both of them keeping sure to stay out of the criminals’ sight.

 

“ _What, you saying my goods ain’t good?_ ” the dealer asked, clearly offended with a hint of nervousness in the back of his voice.

 

“ _I’m not saying that at all,_ ” Black Mask’s head goon replied, even as his compatriots edged closer to the dealer. “ _Just making sure, is all._ ”

 

“ _Well,_ ” the dealer paused, licking his lips, “ _go ahead and check. I ain’t got nothing to hide._ ”

 

“ _If you don’t, then you don’t need to worry about anything._ ”

 

Jaune frowned as he heard the conversation unfold. Although he might not be the smartest person in his peer group, that illustrious honor belonging to Weiss followed by Pyrrha, he could read the undertones. They had to act, and fast. Silently, Jaune and Batgirl took positions on opposite ends of the boarded skylight, their suits muffling their footsteps along the concrete roof while their eyes remained focused on the drug deal below. When the suitcase finally closed, Jaune narrowed his eyes and frowned.

 

“ _Well, what did I tell ‘ya?_ ” the dealer said, sighing in relief. “ _I told you, that’s high-quality stuff right there._ ”

 

“ _Marvin, buddy,_ ” Black Mask’s goon responded, shaking his head. “ _How long have we been friends?_ ”

 

“ _What kind of question is-?_ ”

 

“ _Answer. The question,_ ” the gangster repeated himself, just as his subordinates grabbed Marvin’s arms. Marvin’s heartrate increased significantly, which Jaune’s helmet picked up on.

 

“ _I, uh… I think it’s been about, I don’t know, five years now?_ ” Marvin guessed, only to cry out on pain as one of his captors tightened his grip on his arm. “ _Five! It is five!_ ”

 

“ _Right, right. Well then, Marvin, you see that leaves me in a bit of a conundrum,_ ” the Black Mask goon stated as he pulled up a chair and sat across from the dealer. “ _I distinctly remember ordering five kilos of pure cocaine. That is not what you gave me. You gave me four kilos of cocaine mixed with flour, sugar, and just a hint of various methamphetamines. This isn’t what I ordered, so I have to ask: Marvin, why did you lie to me?_ ”

 

Marvin was sweating now, his heartbeat racing at a mile-a-minute. Jaune frowned, then glanced across the street to Red Hood, waiting for his signal. A silent conversation ensued between the two leaders.

 

‘ _They’re going to kill him,_ ’ Jaune mentally called out.

 

‘ _Wait,_ ’ Red Hood silently replied with a shake of his head, and Jaune’s frown deepened. He couldn’t tell if Red Hood’s patience was part of a sincere plan or simply due to him not caring about the lives of drug dealers and peddlers. Out of all of Batman’s proteges, Jason Todd was by far the most willing to kill those he deemed deserving of it.

 

Below him and Batgirl, the conversation between the two criminals was ongoing. The dealer was running out of excuses, and the gangster was running out of patience. How much longer it would last, Jaune didn’t pretend to know.

 

“ _Look, man. I promise you, I only did that because I had no choice! Most of my suppliers have either been arrested or fled town, and that was all I could get on short notice!_ ”

 

“ _Not good enough. We had a deal, a deal you said you could fulfill, and what do you do? You not only fail to obligate it, instead of being honest and upfront about it, you also lie to my fucking face and try to swindle me. You could’ve given me the four kilos you had, no problem. You would’ve gotten less pay, and I’d be a little disappointed, but I would have understood. Same with my boss. But this shit you pulled, Marvin? Made it worthless._ ”

 

“ _I… I’m sorry! I didn’t think-!_ ” Before Marvin could even finish his sentence, the gangster pulled out his pistol and whacked it across the dealer’s face, cracking his nose and the glasses now revealed to have been on his face. Warm specks of blood shot out as Marvin whimpered in pain, yet the gangster calmly wiped the blood off his gun.

 

“ _Get rid of him,_ ” the gangster ordered, walking back to the briefcase while Marvin wailed for mercy as the two men prepared to carry him off. Jaune shot one last look at Red Hood, who finally nodded.

 

“ _Fire_.”

 

As though in slow motion, two shots rang out, one from each rifle. Both of the criminals holding the dealer were struck in the head by electrified rubber bullets, their entry into the room announced by the shattering of glass. Marvin screamed in fear as the two men’s grip loosened while they fell, and the Black Mask gangster turned around with his pistol outstretched, aiming for the source of the shots. At the same time, the plywood covering the skylight caved in as both Jaune and Batgirl descended, Batgirl landing on top of the gangster while Jaune lunged towards the dealer and his slightly recovered captors. He threw two punches, one to each head, and both men fell with a loud thud into deep unconsciousness. Batgirl, meanwhile, threw a few quick jabs into the gangster’s head, knocking him out as well, and one final shot rang out into Marvin’s head, knocking him out cold.

 

The entire breach took less than five seconds.

 

“ _Good work_ ,” Red Hood called out over the radio. “ _Oracle, call GCPD on my location. Intercepted drug deal involving Black Mask’s gang._ ”

 

“ _On it,_ ” Oracle replied, typing away at her keyboard. “ _Squad car en route._ ”

 

“Good,” Red Hood said as he and Pyrrha grappled their way over to Jaune and Batgirl. “About to interrogate Sionis’ man. Will report back with any information we gather.”

 

“ _Understood._ ” Oracle then signed off, and Red Hood darkly gazed at the gangster lying at his feet before hefting him up onto his shoulder.

 

“We’ll tie the rest of these guys up,” Jaune offered, and Red Hood nodded as he pulled out his grapple gun and aimed it at the skylight. Batgirl joined him, likely to ensure that whatever tactics Red Hood used, he wouldn’t go too far. Jaune and Pyrrha watched as the two of them disappeared onto the roof, then took a second to look around the room. There was very little damage, outside of a few shards of broken glass and splinters of wood lying about the floor. All in all, the two of them were impressed with themselves.

 

“Come on, let’s get these guys secured,” Pyrrha stated. Her partner nodded, then tossed her a pair of handcuffs. They quickly cuffed the men’s wrists behind their backs, the two large criminals having to be flipped onto their bellies in the process. Once all three criminals were secured, Jaune and Pyrrha lifted them up and gently carried them down the stairs to the front of the apartment complex, where they quickly tied them in a circle around a light pole.

 

“There, all done,” Jaune stated, slapping his hands together. He then looked up to the roof, knowing that Red Hood and Batgirl were still interrogating Black Mask’s representative. Assuming the man was conscious, of course. Still, they had time, but far out into the distance Jaune was starting to hear faint police sirens, drawing his attention to them.

 

Pyrrha, meanwhile, remained silent. Her attention was divided, despite her trying to keep herself focused on the task at hand. She suspected that Jaune was doing the same thing, although he appeared to have an easier time of it. She looked back at him, frowned slightly, and tightened her fist.

 

‘ _Maybe I should…_ ’ she thought, her confidence wavering, but then a sense of resolve built up. No, this had gone on long enough, and it was time to address the Goliath in the room.

 

“Hey,” Pyrrha finally called out, catching Jaune’s attention.

 

“Yes, Guardian?” Jaune replied, turning his head to face her.

 

“Can we talk?”

 

“Um, I don’t see why not. What do you-?”

 

“Alone. Please?” Pyrrha clarified, and she saw the white lights emitted from his helmet’s eyeholes widen. She knew he understood exactly what she wanted to talk about.

 

Jaune sighed, then looked to the side. “Yeah. I guess now’s a good a time as any. We can use the room upstairs.”

 

Pyrrha nodded at his suggestion, then the two of them somberly walked up the stairs to the empty room. They scanned it for any listening ears or surveillance devices and found none. Even Batgirl and Red Hood had moved to the far end of the roof, meaning they were truly alone. The two partners then took off their helmets, allowing both to look each other in the eye.

 

“Well…” Jaune began, unsure of where to start. Even now, after more than a month after the revelation, the subject was still awkward.

 

“Hmm,” Pyrrha hummed, feeling just as awkward as her partner, if not more so. Given how the entire source of this nervous atmosphere came from her, she felt she edged him out.

 

“How long?” Jaune asked, finally asking the first question. Pyrrha looked at him, then sighed.

 

“Start of the second semester,” she answered truthfully. Jaune flinched and looked away, a frown crossing his face.

 

“I see.” Jaune looked down, then twiddled his fingers. “So, when I was flirting with Weiss and trying to ask her to the dance…?”

 

Pyrrha winced, then looked down. “…Yeah.”

 

“Why?” Jaune asked, ashamed of himself for forcing his partner into that position. How many times did he go to her about his attempts to get Weiss to notice him? How many times had he not noticed her being uncomfortable about the entire thing?

 

“Jaune, stop,” Pyrrha cut into his thoughts. “I know you’re berating yourself right now.”

 

“And why shouldn’t I?” Jaune replied. “Gods, I feel like such an idiot. Forcing you to—”

 

“You didn’t force me to do anything,” Pyrrha interrupted, placing her hand on his shoulder. “You not noticing was not your fault. It was mine. I wasn’t as forward as I could’ve been, and I don’t blame you for not noticing. Ren and Nora only noticed a few weeks before the dance, and Nora had to drag that confession out of me. I don’t think RWBY even knew until we tested the Lasso, much less any of our classmates.”

 

“But…” Jaune paused at the look Pyrrha shot at him, then sighed. He knew there was no arguing with his partner over this, then ran his armored fingers through his blond hair. “Still, I’m sorry. For not noticing.”

 

“And I’m sorry for not making it clearer,” Pyrrha replied with a faint smile. “I know you would never try to hurt me.”

 

“Yet I did. For months, apparently,” Jaune darkly muttered, a frown on his face. Pyrrha sighed. She cared deeply for her partner and leader, yet always hated when he was like this. The fact that she was indirectly the cause made it feel worse. Rather than respond, Pyrrha remained silent, allowing a healthy pause to rise between them.

 

“I never answered your question,” Pyrrha finally broke the silence. Despite looking down at her hands, she felt Jaune’s gaze directed at her. She continued, “It’s true that, around the start of the second semester, I began to see you in a different light. I saw your dedication, your drive to improve yourself. It was admirable, but what I liked most was that, unlike so many others, you never put me on a pedestal. You just saw me for…me, and I liked that.”

 

“Then why did you try to help me with Weiss?”

 

Pyrrha looked at him. “Because I wanted you to be happy. I still do.”

 

Jaune looked at Pyrrha, a contemplative look on his face. Then he sighed yet again and looked her in the eye.

 

“Pyrrha, I won’t lie to you.” There wasn’t a point to, in Jaune’s mind. “You are my best friend, and I admire you a lot. You’re strong, kind, way more patient with me than you have any right to be. I care about you _strongly_ , but…”

 

“You don’t know yet what that exactly means?” Pyrrha finished for him. Pyrrha knew her partner, so it wasn’t a surprise when he nodded in response. She nodded back, not upset but merely understanding. She moved to speak again, only to suddenly feel a hard tap against her head. She and Jaune looked up and saw Red Hood crouching on one knee and his arm laying across the other.

 

“Hey, lovebirds. When you two are finished with…whatever this is – very touching, by the way – come back up here. We got a lead.”

 

With that, Red Hood stood up and walked out of view. Jaune and Pyrrha looked at the empty space, then back at each other.

 

“… We’ll pick this up later,” Jaune offered, and Pyrrha nodded. The two placed their helmets back atop their heads, then moved up to the roof and rejoined Red Hood and Batgirl. The Black Mask thug was tied against a chimney pipe, a few bruises on his face but nothing too severe.

 

“What he’d say?” Pyrrha asked as Red Hood and Batgirl turned to face them.

 

“A lot, actually,” Red Hood answered. “As it turns out, Sionis Industries is recruiting.”

 

“Sionis Industries? The steel mill?” Jaune asked, and Batgirl nodded.

 

“And, if you couldn’t tell by the name, the central hub of Black Mask’s entire operation. Money laundering, the drug trade, extortion, all of it flows through Sionis Industries.”

 

“So, if Sionis Industries is recruiting…” Pyrrha began, “that means so is he.”

 

“Exactly. That’s our way in,” Red Hood replied. Jaune tapped his chin, running over the possibilities.

 

“Right… We could disguise ourselves as potential recruits. Walk right in, then gather the information we need.”

 

“And maybe raise some hell along the way.” From behind his mask, Red Hood smiled. The four heroes looked at each other, then one-by-one nodded in agreement.

 

“So, where do we start?” Pyrrha asked, and Batgirl motioned for them to follow her.

 

Soon after, a lone GCPD squad car arrived on the scene, where they found a group of criminals tied to a light post. Behind them, emblazoned in red along the apartment building’s exterior, was graffiti depicting a large bat-symbol, telling the police exactly who was here.

 

~

 

“I’m not sure about this,” Pyrrha admitted as she, Jaune, Jason and Cassandra walked along a darkened street near the steel mill. Their costumes were safely tucked away on a secluded rooftop where they could get back to them quickly. Instead, they were wearing thick and baggy clothes that made them look as though they belonged to a group of people trying to join a gang.

 

“I know. Who wears pants this low?” Jaune asked as he readjusted himself. “People actually wear stuff like this?”

 

“Yes, now focus,” Jason shot back as the four of them rounded a corner. “Now, the first part is easy. All we have to do is talk to the recruiter and convince him to let us in. Once we do, start combing the place for evidence. Anything we can tie Sionis to, the better.”

 

Jaune, Pyrrha, and Cassandra nodded and continued to walk down the sidewalk. The night air was chilly, and occasionally Jaune could see his breath condense into light huffs, but he wasn’t too cold. He then took a glance at Pyrrha, who was still uncomfortable. Luckily, this time it didn’t appear to be about the two of them.

 

“Hey,” Jaune started, putting his hand on her shoulder, “you’ll be fine.”

 

“But I’ve never done something like this before,” Pyrrha replied, flashing an awkward grin.

 

“Neither have I,” Jaune reassured her, then he blinked. “Well actually, I guess entering a dangerous organization by pretending to be something I’m not isn’t exactly new to me.” He chuckled half-deprecatingly, “Though I wouldn’t say I’m actually good at it."

 

“Jaune…” Pyrrha chastised with a small frown, to which Jaune rubbed the back of his head and chuckled nervously. Despite his attempts to hide it, he was nervous, too, but in contrast, Jason and Cassandra appeared right at home. Jaune wasn’t surprised by that, and neither was Pyrrha.

 

“Just…act natural. Okay?” he suggested. “It’s what got me through.”

 

Pyrrha looked at her partner for a moment, then breathed in softly and exhaled. “…Okay.”

 

Jaune smiled, patted her shoulder, then turned his attention back to their surroundings. There were a few scattered citizens, most walking home from work at a fast pace. He couldn’t blame them, especially in this part of town. There were a few more suspicious-looking individuals hanging around near dark alleys, but the heroes forced themselves to not intervene. They needed to remain incognito for the moment, especially as their destination neared. It was tucked away in an alley between two tenement buildings, walled off by a chain-link fence. Rusted dumpsters lined one side yet heaps of trash still lay scattered along the pavement. A rank smell rose up as they neared, but Jaune forced himself to hold in his urge to gag. Pyrrha was less able to do so, but she quickly recomposed herself as the four of them entered the alley. A dense cloud seemed to hang over the air, but the four heroes ignored it and strode towards the fence, then stopped as they saw a dark figure leaning against the wall, part of his face illuminated by the faint glow of a burning cigar.

 

“Well,” the man said, puffing out smoke and holding his cigar between his fingers, “what do we have here? A couple of teenagers out on a nightly stroll?”

 

“Something like that,” Jason replied, putting his hands in his overcoat’s pocket.

 

“Mighty dangerous to do that around here, you know,” the man pointed out, taking another smoke. “Unless of course you already knew that, then I have to ask ‘why?’”

 

“You live around here long enough, you realize there are only two ways to live in Gotham,” Jason answered. He didn’t need to elaborate further, as the criminal knew exactly what he was referring to. “I hear Black Mask is recruiting.”

 

“And what if he is?” the gangster asked, putting away his cigar and focusing his attention squarely on the four of them.

 

“We want in,” Jaune spoke up, trying to make his voice sound rougher. “I’m tired of living in fear all the time.” Cassandra scowled and crossed her arms in emphasis, shooting the man a tired yet determined look. Pyrrha took her cue to speak up, and the rest of them almost immediately noticed a problem.

 

“Yeah, and it’s ‘bout time we start dishing it out ourselves, ya dig?” Pyrrha said animatedly, trying her best to imitate how she thought criminals sounded like. Jaune shot her a look from the corner of his eye, but the recruiter didn’t seem phased by her overacting.

 

“Well then, you four came to the right place. You’re right, Black Mask is recruiting, and you can’t join a better gang than his.”

 

“Yeah, ‘cuz he ain’t crazy like the rest of ‘em,” Jason muttered, just loud enough for the recruiter to hear. The criminal smiled and nodded, agreeing with that statement, but then his expression turned serious.

 

“Still, I can’t just let anyone join,” the man continued, prompting Jason, Cassandra, and Jaune to cross their arms and frown. Pyrrha, however, went further.

 

“You doubtin’ us? You disrepectin’ us?!” Pyrrha asked, tilting her head and boring her eyes into his. Now everyone’s attention was focused on her. Her teammates looked worried, while the recruiter simply looked perplexed.

 

“I wasn’t saying that…” he tried to clarify, but Pyrrha wasn’t having it.

 

“Oh, bull. Ya hear this fool? He doubtin’ us! Doubtin’ we got what’s it takes to participate! Why I outta-!” Pyrrha accused, preparing to step forward. Jason and Cassandra’s eyes widened, slightly pleading for her to stop, but Jaune took her by the arm and began to drag her away. She went with it, adding, “Oh, you lucky my man’s pulling me back! If he wasn’t, yo ass be dead for disrespectin’ me and my crew! Ya hear me?!”

 

Pyrrha continued to shout as Jaune dragged her out of the alleyway with surprising strength, all the while Jason, Cassandra, and the recruiter looked at her with alarmed and bewildered eyes. Jaune himself didn’t say a word, seemingly allowing Pyrrha to continue her rant until they went into an adjacent alleyway, at which point Pyrrha finally stopped. He then spun her around, her back facing the building while he stared at her. Pyrrha, finally calming herself down, felt her face turn red in embarrassment and gulped.

 

“… How’d I-?”

 

“What was that?” Jaune interrupted, and Pyrrha’s blush deepened.

 

“I’m sorry! “ Pyrrha apologized. “It’s just that I’m not used to this and I’ve never done this before and I was acting really mean back there and it hurt me to act like that and-!”

 

“Pyrrha, breathe,” Jaune told her, taking both of her shoulders in hand. Pyrrha breathed in and out a few times, and after a few moments felt her heart rate slow and her face cool down.

 

“You good?” Jaune asked, and Pyrrha nodded.

 

“Yeah, I’m good.”

 

“I’m glad to hear that. Now then,” Jaune looked her in the eyes again, “remember when I said to act natural?”

 

“… Yes?”

 

“Forget that. Don’t act natural, you’re terrible at it,” Jaune suggested. Pyrrha felt herself shrink under the criticism, embarrassed beyond relief, but knew she had to hear it.

 

“…okay,” Pyrrha murmured with a nod. Jaune nodded back, then both partners turned as a pair of footsteps approached them. They saw Jason and Cassandra walk into the alley, a deep frown marring Jason’s face.

 

“Okay, Pyrrha? What the hell was-?”

 

“We’ve already been over it,” Jaune placated him, holding up his hand. Jason scoffed and shook his head.

 

“Good, because my God…” Jason complained with a noticeable roll of his eyes. Pyrrha’s embarrassed blush returned, and Jaune lightly glared at the older boy, but he ignored them. “Okay, good news is he’ll take us in.”

 

“That’s a relief,” Jaune sighed, and Jason nodded.

 

“Yep. Told us to meet him at the gates to Sionis Industries in about an hour, where he’ll open it up for us.”

 

“What’ll we do until then?” Pyrrha asked, eager to change the subject away from her abysmal acting performance.

 

“Strategize,” Jaune answered. The trio nodded at this, then walked away into the night.

 

~

 

For much of the next hour, the four heroes did as Jaune suggested. They planned for every scenario they could think of. There wasn’t a reason not to, given that they were walking into a lion’s den of hardened criminals and gangsters. Jason was right when he said that, unlike most of Gotham’s criminals, Black Mask wasn’t insane. But that didn’t mean he was any less dangerous. If anything, he was worse. Roman Sionis fashioned himself as a classic gangster, straight from _The Godfather_. Just as Oswald Cobblepot controlled the arms industry in Gotham, Roman controlled the drug trade and smuggling operations. He worked very hard to keep his grasp on that lucrative market and had hurt a lot of people in the process. They had to stay on their guard.

 

However, they couldn’t help but focus their attention on a more peculiar sight happening in the Gotham airspace on the other side of town.

 

“What do you think they’re doing?” Jaune asked as he tilted his head at the sight, trying to make sense of it all.

 

“No idea,” Jason admitted. It was hard for him to understand why a group of GCPD airships was moving around randomly, arranging themselves in an order that didn’t make any sense to him. It didn’t make sense to any of them.

 

“You know, this reminds me,” Pyrrha stated, transfixed on the airships. “Why does Gotham have airships as part of its police department?”

 

“They’re cheap, fuel-efficient, easy to learn, and hard to shoot down,” Jason immediately answered.

 

“Ah, I see.” A silence descended over the group again, then Jaune tapped his fingers.

 

“Hey, isn’t that were Ruby is working?” Jaune asked. They thought for a moment, then realized he was right. “Maybe she knows?”

 

Jason nodded, then pressed his fingers to his ear to ask Ruby what was going on, only to immediately be assaulted by Ruby’s voice.

 

“ _Nonononono! Not that way!_ ” Ruby’s voice rang out over the radio. “ _Turn left! My left, not yours!_ ”

 

“ _I just did!_ ” a male voice replied.

 

“ _No, you went your left, rookie_ ,” another voice, this one female, responded. “ _Get the gunk out of your ears and do as you’re told._ ”

 

“ _Yes! Thank you, kind lady!_ ”

 

“ _Why are we listening to this kid, anyway?_ ”

 

“ _First off, I am_ not _a kid. I am a hero-in-training. Second, you are making things really difficult right now._ ”

 

“ _Don’t mind him,_ ” another male voice started. “ _He’s just mad you gave him the designation ‘Butt’_.”

 

“ _No, I’m not!_ ” Butt protested unconvincingly. _“It’s not my fault the bottom of the symbol’s on my blimp!_ ”

 

“ _Well, you’re acting like one, Butt!_ ” Ruby countered.

 

“ _Airship ‘Head’ agrees with this,_ ” the woman joked with an audible smile on her face, and Butt groaned.

 

Silently, Jason switched off the radio. From the looks on their faces, the rest of his teammates were just as bewildered regarding what exactly Ruby was doing with the airships. Silently, they looked at each other, then agreed to simply ask her what was going on when they met up with her after the mission. Cassandra’s watch then beeped, and a stoic look crossed all their faces.

 

“Time to go,” Jaune said, tucking his hands into his hoodie’s front pocket. Jason did the same with his jacket, and together they and Cassandra and Pyrrha walked towards Sionis Industries. The streets were now devoid of any life, outside of swarms of insects and bats flying high above the yellow incandescent streetlights. Past an intersection, they saw the dark steel gates to Sionis Industries, even now puffing out thick, black smoke into the night air. The entire plant had a dirty feel to it, and just walking closer to it made Jaune and Pyrrha want to hop into a shower. But they had a job to do, no matter how uncomfortable it made them.

 

Ahead of the gate, smoking on another cigar, was the same recruiter they met before. He noticed them quickly, extinguishing his cigar against the brick outer wall of the gate he was leaning against.

 

“Good, you’re here,” he said, walking over to the gate while checking for any eyes. When he was satisfied that they were alone, he creaked the gate open slightly, allowing for the disguised heroes to enter unabated. When Jaune passed, however, he grabbed the young man’s shoulder and turned Jaune to face him. “Now, when we get inside, you keep your girl in line. Got it?”

 

Despite having his back to hers, Jaune could feel the embarrassed blush streak across Pyrrha’s face and nodded.

 

“Good. ‘Cuz if she does that in there, things could get bad. Many of ‘em might not be so forgiving as I am.”

 

They all knew what he was referring to, and all nodded. Part of Jaune wished that he had Crocea Mors with him, the blade part, but beyond it being exceedingly difficult to sneak a sword-and-collapsible-shield into a gang recruitment, his sword’s replacement was still under construction. He knew what he wanted to do with it, or at least a general idea, but progress was still slow. It wasn’t helped by Ruby’s over-enthusiastic attempts to help. At one point, she wanted to turn Crocea Mors into an interchangeable sword/assault rifle, but Jaune shot that down. He wanted Crocea Mors’ successor to be as close to the original as possible, with a healthy assortment of upgrades.

 

Ruby did call him a spoil-sport for that and pouted, but Jaune felt it was more cute than anything.

 

They finally entered the main building of Sionis Industries. A pair of machinegun-toting guards opened the wide double-doors from the inside, closing them with a loud thud once they passed the threshold. Cassandra figured they had passed the point of no return now. Either they accomplish their mission as planned, then get out with no-one the wiser, or they’ll be forced to fight their way out.

 

‘ _Batmobile is on standby, ready for extraction. Just say the word,_ ’ Oracle texted the heroes, the words appearing on the clear contacts they wore over their eyes. None of them responded but knew that Oracle read them loud and clear. The Batmobile was their best chance at getting out, should the mission get hot, so it being ready to roar in at a moment’s notice was critical.

 

“So,” Jaune asked, looking around with a hint of nervousness both real and fake, “what can we expect?”

 

“Good question,” the recruiter responded. “Black Mask doesn’t just take anybody. He has standards, and he expects you to meet those standards. It’s what I was trying to say earlier before your girl went all accusatory on me.”

 

Pyrrha blushed again and looked away, but if he noticed he didn’t show it.

 

“She’s sorry about that. Had some bad experiences with this kind of thing before. Don’t mind her,” Jason said, shooting Pyrrha a look as she mouthed ‘I’m sorry’ back at her comrades.

 

“I figured.” The recruiter shrugged, seemingly buying their explanation. For being a hardened criminal, the man was surprisingly lenient, a far cry from the drug dealer they apprehended just hours before.

 

“So, how do we meet those standards?” Pyrrha asked, trying to add to the discussion. The recruiter looked at her for a moment then continued walking forward.

 

“Just a couple of challenges to check you out. How tough you are, how strong you are, how smart you are, and whether you can use a gun or not.”

 

“Actual bullets?” Jason asked, a noticeable edge to his voice.

 

“God, no. Paint. What, you thought we’d give a bunch of recruits a loaded gun? That’s a recipe for disaster.”

 

“Figured, just wanted to ask.”

 

The recruiter sighed and shook his head, muttering under his breath, but any further conversation was halted when they reached another set of double doors, these made of metal. They paused, then their guide banged on the metal door a few times with his fist. A slide in the middle opened, exposing a pair of eyes that locked with the recruiter’s. A moment passed, then the slide closed, and the doors creaked open. The heavy metal slid against the tile floor, carving along a noticeable scrape, but the heroes’ attention was focused squarely on the gathering before them.

 

“Oh… That’s a lot of people…” Jaune muttered. He had expected a lot, both in terms of recruits but also actual gangsters. But this was easily double his greatest expectations. What was most alarming, however, was that roughly half of the criminals weren’t wearing the same attire as Black Mask’s gang. Instead, they were wearing thick, heavy coats that were half-black and half-white, the split occurring vertically down the middle.

 

“Two-Face…” Jason realized with wide eyes and clenched fists, while the recruiter nodded.

 

“Yep,” the recruiter stated, his back facing the heroes. “The two of them have been working out an alliance the past couple of months. Scarecrow’s attack pushed up the time-table.”

 

“That so?” Jason asked, his eyes narrowing.

 

“Yeah, it’ll be a pretty sweet gig. Plus, we lost a lot of guys during that maniac’s rampage.”

 

The heroes stayed silent, moving their eyes around the room. Not a word was said, yet all understood what the others were saying: this mission just got a lot more complicated.

 

When they finally reached the large gathering, the recruiter left them. Whether he left to get more recruits or to help in the evaluation, they didn’t know, nor did they care. Their attention was focused squarely on the two men standing on a stage. The man on the left was wearing a white suit with thin black lines stretching vertically down it. A black tie was wrapped around his neck, and his face was covered by a large black wooden mask. To Jaune and Pyrrha’ horror, the edges of it appeared burnt and molded with the flesh underneath. Had Black Mask’s namesake been fused onto him? Neither of them could imagine what horrific event could’ve led to that.

 

On Black Mask’s right stood an equally scarred man, if not more so. What was most striking about him to the two former huntsmen-in-training was the sheer contrast he embodied. On one side of him, he looked perfectly normal. Dressed in a plain white suit, with neatly combed hair and a handsome face. But the other was heavily scarred, mangled and burnt. It started with his face and extended down to the heavily burnt side of clothing to the point where it was black. A heavy snarl was plastered across the scarred side, etched for eternity, and all the while he casually flipped a coin up and down into the air.

 

“I can see why they have their names…” Jaune muttered under his breath, which Pyrrha, Jason, and Cassandra nodded to. They otherwise remained silent, looking over everything for leads as Black Mask and Two-Face looked around the room.

 

“Well,” Black Mask finally called out, hushing the assembled group into silence, “I see my boys outdid themselves today. What a nice selection of boys and girls.”

 

A silent challenge to speak up was issued, but none accepted it. From behind the mask, Cassandra could see this was the intended response. Despite heavily outnumbering him and his supposed partner, the criminals around her were clearly terrified. Everything about their bodies was screaming it, from the small shakes in their boots and hands to the trickles of sweat going down their brows. Two-Face was hard to read, given how he seemed to switch from calm to furious on every coin-flip. Black Mask, on the other hand, was cold, calculating, and vengeful.

 

“So, you all think you have what it takes to be part of my crew?” Black Mask continued as he waved his hand forward. At once, a group of men tied and gagged to vertical gurneys were wheeled out on stage.

 

“Here’s the thing about joining me,” Black Mask pulled out a silver pistol and pointed it at one of the men. “There’s only one thing I can’t tolerate, and that’s stabbing me in the back. Like these fine gentlemen. Harvey, you mind telling everyone what they did?”

 

Harvey Dent paused, then flipped the coin. His eyes followed it, then caught the piece of silver in his hand. He looked at its face, then back at Roman Sionis.

 

“They betrayed you,” Harvey declared, looking at the shaking men. “Worked for Scarecrow against your orders.”

 

“Not only that,” Black Mask continued, walking up to one of them and pressing his gun against his temple, “they had the _audacity_ to tell me that, when they got caught, said I told them to. To my face! I’d be impressed if I wasn’t so insulted. Frankly, I don’t know what’s worse. The fact that they did it, or that they were stupid enough to fall for it in the first place. This is _Gotham_ , people. We all know how many shape-shifters and illusionists call this hellhole home, and the fact that these idiots forgot that little fact just. Can’t. Stand.”

 

Cassandra’s eyes widened, but then Jason turned her away. Jaune and Pyrrha did as well, then a shot rang out. She clamped her eyes shut, trying to drown out the sound of more gunshots, but even after years of practice, it was hard. Her adopted older-brother kept her attention focused away, but then a criminal near them noticed their reactions and scoffed.

 

“What? Can’t stand the sight of-?” he began to mock, only for Jason to roughly pull his shirt towards his face.

 

“Finish that sentence and you’ll lose a few teeth,” he hissed. The criminal got the message and nodded frantically. Only then did Jason let go, and together the four heroes weaved their way through the crowd and towards the back of the room.

 

“Let that be a lesson to all of you,” Black Mask yelled out. “I can tolerate failure, I can tolerate mistakes, but if you pass selection and then betray me, or prove to be an absolute idiot, you just signed your own death warrant. Am I understood?!”

 

“Yes, sir!” the crowd yelled out. Black Mask, satisfied, switched the safety on his gun, holstered it, then gestured towards a group of his men.

 

“Get these bodies out of here,” Black Mask ordered.

 

“Where to, boss?” one of them asked, but Black Mask waved his hand.

 

“Dump ‘em out back,” he ordered. The criminals nodded, then began to wheel their now-dead former comrades with little issue. The heroes watched as they left the room behind. Black Mask and Two-Face began to leave as well, heading towards an overhanging office to conduct business. Organizers began to walk towards the assembled recruits, dividing them up into groups.

 

“Jason, we have a problem,” Jaune pointed out.

 

“I know,” Jason whispered back. He looked around one last time, then shook his head. “This doesn’t change a thing.”

 

“We already got what we came for,” Pyrrha mentioned. “Why don’t we just leave?”

 

“Because, knowing that Black Mask didn’t order his men to help doesn’t answer why some of them did,” Jason replied.

 

“He did mention that his men thought Black Mask ordered them to,” Jaune added. “Maybe he has something that can help us narrow it down?”

 

“Perhaps…” Jason paused and rubbed his chin. He then felt a tug on his sleeve and looked down to see Cassandra giving him a determined look. A silent conversation ensued between the two of them, and finally, Jason nodded in agreement.

 

“We got a plan?” Pyrrha asked, and Jason nodded.

 

“Yeah, we do. Pyrrha, you, Jaune and I are gonna do the tryouts, while Cassandra sneaks in back and looks for any evidence.”

 

“Of course. She’s smaller, and better at stealth than any of us,” Jaune murmured an agreement. The trio then looked at Cassandra, who nodded back with a stoic, determined expression.

 

“Hey, you three!” one of the organizers called out, turning their attention. “Hurry up or you’re out!”

 

They didn’t even need to turn around to see Cassandra off, for she was already gone, having pried loose an air duct grate and slipped inside. Jaune, Jason, and Pyrrha instead walked towards the recruiter. To their slight surprise, he split them apart, Jaune and Pyrrha staying together in one group while Jason went to another.

 

“Wasn’t there another with you?” the organizer asked Jason, but he shook his head.

 

“No.”

 

“Really? Huh, I could’ve sworn… Ah, forget it. Now move it!”

 

Jason nodded, fighting back the urge to deck the man who thought he could order him around but forced himself to stay compliant. Jaune and Pyrrha were having an easier time doing so, although Pyrrha looked increasingly uncomfortable. He hoped she wouldn’t try to overact again, but what’s done is done. Now, all they had to do was keep them occupied while Cassandra worked her magic.

 

~

 

Cassandra Cain crept through the steel mill’s air ducts, only stopping momentarily inside an intersection to take off her overly baggy clothes and reveal her batsuit underneath. Like many of Gotham’s older buildings, it was a maze. Had Black Mask deigned to upgrade to more efficient systems, she likely wouldn’t be able to do this. But luckily for her, criminals like Roman Sionis weren’t all that interested in making their money-laundering hubs energy efficient. Especially when he owned the company that maintained them. Instead of going further into the building, however, she was heading towards a small rooftop she knew was close by. Cassandra had considered simply sneaking in as is, but that carried risks that she couldn’t take.

 

She reached the rooftop without issue, taking off the grate outside and crawling out into the night air. Closing the grate behind her, Batgirl looked around the steel mill. As she suspected, scattered along various walkways and lookouts were men wielding sniper rifles outfitted with laser sights and night vision scopes. They were scanning the surroundings for any sign of activity, namely their own. Clearly, Black Mask and Two-Face didn’t want them sneaking in from above as they tended to do.

 

Too bad he didn’t expect them to sneak in through the front door and already being inside, which left her enough of an opening for Batgirl to scale the exterior towards a window, which she gently opened, climbed through, and closed behind her.

 

As silently as she could, Batgirl crept through the building, her cowl scanning for any biological or electronic signatures. There were a few isolated guards on her floor, but she avoided those. If push came to shove, she had confidence in her ability to fend them off but knew doing so ran the risk of their infiltration being discovered, and with so many criminals surrounding them from all sides, that was a dangerous proposition. Just one missed status update could turn the whole thing belly-up.

 

“Geez, these guys smell,” she heard a voice coming from below as she neared an open balcony. She paused, then walked over to the balcony’s edge to look down upon the group of criminals wheeling the dead bodies towards a large shipping container. The container itself was covered in rust and mold, with sizable holes scattered around it. Thick chains were wrapped around the front, sealing it shut, but for what purpose Batgirl didn’t know.

 

“You get used to it,” another stated as they neared the container. “Everyone craps themselves when they kick it.” Yet another was waiting for them, and upon their arrival unlocked the chains and opened it. To Batgirl’s horror, she saw many bodies lying inside, most of them fresh and wearing the same uniform.

 

‘ _Must be more of Black Mask’s men,_ ’ Batgirl thought to herself but remained focused on the ones still alive. They were nervous, not at the bodies dumped at their feet but something else. Something that was inside the shipping container. Batgirl pursed her lips, then switched her optics to thermal imaging to try and discern what had frightened them so. To her surprise, among the cold pile of bodies she saw a large corpse chained up to the far end of the container. It wasn’t moving, but something about its thermal signature seemed off.

 

“God, that thing gives me the creeps,” one of the men admitted as the crate was closed. “Where’d Sionis even find it?”

 

“Somewhere out in Slaughter Swamp,” another answered. “Took a lot of work to bring it in. Tough bastard, too.”

 

The men continued to speak, shifting towards other topics, but Batgirl’s attention remained focused on the container for a few seconds more. She frowned, then turned away and went back inside the steel mill. Right now, she had to focus on uncovering evidence and figured she’d check it out later.

 

Batgirl continued her traversal of the old steel mill, passing by various pieces of corporate propaganda decades old at this point. Back when Roman’s parents owned the steel mill, alongside their primary venture of Janus Cosmetics, they might have been genuine. Of course, they were some of the most self-absorbed people Bruce had ever met, obsessed with keeping up appearances. They likely only kept the steel mill to ensure it stayed in the family name. Roman himself didn’t have much use for it outside of laundering and the small trickle of legitimate income it generated. Probably why he never bothered cleaning it up.

 

When Batgirl heard more voices coming towards her, she quickly rappelled herself to the ceiling and pressed herself into a shadow. Moments later, a pair of guards patrolled through the hallway, idly chatting between them. Their conversation was banal, but Batgirl was more interested in watching how their bodies spoke. As she hoped, they were the picture of calm, telling her that her presence wasn’t yet suspected. Vowing to keep it that way, when the guards turned a corner she hopped down and continued moving. Her objective was nearby, and soon she came across the front door to Roman’s personal office. Unlike the rest of the steel mill, this room was in immaculate condition. It looked nice, even, and she was mature enough to admit that.

 

A quick scan inside confirmed there was no one waiting for her, and so Batgirl picked the lock and went inside. She went to work immediately, slightly opening a window in case she needed a quick escape and began opening file cabinets and drawers to search for any files. Most of what she found was financial transactions, including the buying and selling of Black Mask’s illegitimate goods. They weren’t named properly, but it wasn’t hard to understand what ‘sugar’ and ‘flour’ and ‘salt’ actually meant. Using her cowl, she scanned and uploaded the documents to Oracle’s database, knowing they’d be useful in potentially bringing Roman down. When she searched the last cabinet, however, she frowned as there was nothing inside that could tell her as to who could’ve directed his men to assist Scarecrow. She then looked at the computer sitting on Sionis’ ebony desk and moved over to it. Batgirl pressed a few keys and frowned at the request for a password.

 

“ _One moment,_ ” Oracle said preemptively. “ _Batgirl, if you can insert the thumb drive?_ ”

 

She did as requested, pulling out a small USB and inserting it into the computer. A moment later, the screensaver fizzled with the brief image of a bat-symbol, then successfully logged on. The algorithm searched for any suspicious files and pulled up several with ease. Most of them were receipts and reports, but one was a video. Suspicious, Batgirl opened it, and the video opened to the end of an intense, torturous interrogation.

 

“ _Now, I’m not gonna ask again,_ ” Black Mask threatened as he walked before a man chained to a table. The victim was shaking, clearly terrified, while Black Mask was cold, tranquil fury. “ _Why did you help him?_ ”

 

“ _You… You told me too,_ ” the chained criminal replied, only for Black Mask to violently whip him across the face with his gun multiple times.

 

“ _Don’t! Lie! To! Me!_ ” Each impact was emphasized by a furious shout, and once he was done a panting Black Mask stepped away. “ _You knew I hated Crane and psychos like him. Hell, I can hardly stand looking at Harvey’s stupid face, but at least he I can tolerate half the time. So, for you and your buddies to turn around and go behind my back to accept a job with him, I can’t even describe how angry I am right now._ ”

 

“ _I’m sorry, boss! I didn’t know, I swear!_ ” the man begged, tears coming out of his face. “ _None of us did!_ ”

 

“ _Well then, if that’s the case,_ ” Black Mask pulled up a chair and sat down, “ _it appears that someone impersonated me. Must have been good for you idiots to believe it. Was it Karlo?_ ”

 

“ _Clayface? No, he’s in Arkham right now._ ”

 

“ _Too bad. If it was him, you might’ve gotten off lenient._ ”

 

Before the video could continue, Batgirl shut it off, unwilling to see anymore. She could imagine how it ended, anyway, and she wasn’t itching to investigate further. Taking a few deep breaths, Batgirl tapped her ears a few times again, prompting Oracle to speak up.

 

“ _Alright, I think I got what we need,_ ” Oracle admitted. _“According to the documents Sionis had accumulated, apparently a few weeks before Crane’s attack a number of his newer recruits, as well as some of his more violent mobsters, were approached by someone impersonating him. Possibly multiple people. The locations where the meetings happened are documented as well, along with the approximate timeframes. You know, for as much of a failure in business Sionis was, he’s surprisingly detailed in his criminal notes. Certainly makes my job easier._ ”

 

Batgirl nodded, silently asking Oracle if there was anything else she needed.

 

“ _No, I think we’re good. If we take this with the evidence the others gathered, we should be able to paint a clearer picture._ ”

 

Batgirl nodded again, signing off and preparing to leave. She logged out of the computer, pulling out the USB, only to hear the door lock jiggle as someone tried to enter. Immediately, Batgirl left the room through the window she had left open for this very purpose, closing it just as the door opened.

 

“Damn door. Need to get that lock fixed,” Sionis complained as she heard him enter his office alongside another. She herself was hanging off the side of the balcony, inching herself closer to a shadow while keeping her ear pinned to the wall. She heard a coin flip and a hand catch it.

 

“You should,” the rough, gravelly voice of Two-Face spoke up as he sat down on a chair.

 

“Is that your opinion or what the coin tells you to think?” Instead of responding, Harvey Dent merely flipped a coin and remained silent. Rather than be offended, Roman merely chuckled. “You see, this is why I like you, Harvey. At least you’re honest.”

 

Another coin flip. “How does the coin make me honest?”

 

“It’s not the coin, it’s just that you’re honest about what you do.” Batgirl heard a drink being poured. “You see, the others in Gotham, they put on masks. Rich, coming from me I know, but theirs are deeper. They pretend to be something they aren’t, and nothing pisses me off more. Cobblepot? He’s just as bad as the rest of us, but he acts like he’s a functioning member of Gotham’s ‘high society’. The Joker acts like he’s the only one who knows how the world really works, but we all know how twisted that whack job is. Anyone who works with him gets what’s coming to ‘em.”

 

Harvey flipped the coin again. “You think I’m crazy, too. You’ve told me as such, so why do you want to work together?”

 

“I recognize where the winds are blowing,” Black Mask repeated. “Back in the old days, it was just cops. Them you could buy off or threaten. Wasn’t that hard. ‘Specially round here. But then the Bat showed up, and Superman. Strong, noble, incorruptible. Once they appeared, costumed freaks started popping up everywhere. One’s we couldn’t fight off. But even then, at first they acted isolated. Separate from one another. Now they got a goddamn space station filled with hundreds of ‘em, freaks with powers and abilities working together that none of us can hope to fend off on our own.”

 

“And you think you and I can fend off the entire Justice League?” Two-Face asked, seemingly amused.

 

“Hell no. I’m not stupid enough to try that. No, what I’m talking about is keeping the Bat off our tails. You know he doesn’t let anyone else into ‘his’ city, and I aim to make him regret that choice.”

 

Harvey flipped his lucky coin, then took a drink that Roman had apparently offered him. Batgirl, meanwhile, frowned. The prospect of supervillain teams wasn’t anything new. There were several of them operating around the world, the most successful of which was the so-called ‘Secret Society’. They managed to be a persistent foe to the nascent Justice League before eventually being defeated, but outside of them none of the supervillain team ups worked as successfully. All ended the same way, with the villains turning on each other, unable to move past their individual desires. Even if she very much doubted a Black Mask/Two-Face alliance would end any differently, she couldn’t let it come to pass.

 

The only question was ‘how.’

 

~

 

One of the things that Bruce had emphasized since the start of their training was how to learn about a person by watching how they moved. A person’s body language often told more about who they were and how they felt than any words could. It was harder for the body to lie, which is why Jason kept his attention focused on how people reacted around him.

 

“Gaagh!” a criminal yelled as he swung a fist towards Jaune, who dodged it easily and socked him across the jaw.

 

“Ooh!” the group around them called out as Jaune’s opponent fell to the ground, completely unconscious.

 

“Alright, Felipe, you pass,” Jaune’s organizer called out. Jaune nodded, then offered to help his opponent up to his feet, only to have his hand be rebuffed. Jaune frowned, then walked away. Jason paid attention to him, seeing that although Jaune wasn’t physically hurt, he was uncomfortable in this environment. He couldn’t blame him. After all, this entire mill was a dark, filthy mess that should have been condemned years ago in Jason’s opinion. Still, Jason could see that Jaune was trying his best to play along. This included deliberately making himself be less effective in combat, focusing on simple blows that anyone could do. That part was easy, as Jaune only had to fight like he did when he first arrived at Beacon, a humbling fact that Jason could readily see written on Jaune’s face.

Pyrrha was another story.

 

“I’m sorry _that didn’t hurt more!_ ” Pyrrha hastily corrected herself as she sent another man to the ground. Jason winced, both at the heavy blow she landed on the man as well as how obviously uncomfortable she was. Anyone with a passing knowledge of people could read Pyrrha like a book, and it told quite the story: that she was uncomfortable and playing it up. Jason presumed that most of the criminals around her couldn’t see that, only seeing the bottom of her feet as she kicked their asses, but if they did, he could only hope that they assumed she was only nervous. With all the guns around, he didn’t want to think about the possibility of them being found out.

 

“Pay attention to me, dammit!” his own opponent shouted angrily, rushing towards him with his fist raised. Jason, without even looking, swiveled around the man and punched into his gut, knocking the air out of his lungs. He followed it up with hammer blow to his back, knocking him to the ground and allowing Jason to pin him. Jason pulled back the man’s leg, and after a few seconds of thrashing he tapped out.

 

“Malone, you pass,” Jason’s organizer called out. The vigilante calmly walked out of the ring, purposefully stepping on his fallen opponent’s back both to blend in as well as because he wanted to. Once he was out, others came and picked up his fallen opponent, allowing Jason to turn his attention back towards the group around him.

 

“Hey,” one of the men around him spoke up, “you fight pretty good.”

 

“Yeah,” Jason murmured back, not really paying much attention.

 

“That’s cool. You trained?”

 

“Little bit.”

 

“Nice. Never got into it, myself. Figure why punch a person when a bat works just fine.”

 

Jason ignored him, but the talkative recruit didn’t seem to care. He was likely nervous, judging by how he constantly shifted his weight from foot to foot, and simply talking to someone calmed him down.

 

“Hey, quick question,” he said. Jason rolled his eyes but made no move to cut him off. “You haven’t noticed anything weird around town, have you?”

 

“Gotham’s always been weird, man,” one of Two-Face’s men, who was apparently eavesdropping on them, pointed out, but the nervous recruit simply turned back to face him.

 

“Yeah, but… Haven’t you noticed people disappearing lately?”

 

“To which I reply again; this is _Gotham_. People disappear all the time. Hell, I’ve helped out with a few ransom kidnappings.”

 

“Did all of them happen in one of Gotham’s parks?” the recruit asked, to which the Two-Face goon looked at him strangely.

 

“Not all of them. But, admittedly, getting someone at night in the park is always a reliable place.”

 

“Yeah, I figured that, but… I knew some guys. Big, strong tough guys. You know the type, guys that aren’t scared of anything. A week ago, they went into Robinson Park and…they didn’t come out.”

 

“Maybe they just ran out on ya?” another criminal mocked, causing his fellows to laugh along with him. Jason, meanwhile, remained silent. If he wasn’t focused on what the criminal was telling him before, he was paying full attention now.

 

“Do you know of anyone else?” Jason asked, his arms folded, and his attention divided between the test before him and the criminal beside him.

 

“Um, yeah. My friend, Paulie, he works at a construction yard. A few of his coworkers went missing in the same park a few days before my friends disappeared. That’s kinda why I’m here, actually.”

 

“Mmhmm,” Jason hummed, nodding along. Suspicion was rising in his gut, and it was telling him that they should look into this. He blinked a few times purposefully, signaling Oracle – who was already listening in – to start searching for any patterns of disappearances in Robinson Park over the past few weeks.

 

“Next up! The shooting tests!” the head organizer shouted, directing Jason’s attention as well as everyone else’s. Jason saw Jaune flinch reflexively, due to the fact that the boy wasn’t much of a shot. Now that he thought about it, Jason figured that he should probably start helping the younger boy select a gun of his own. That way he wouldn’t charge into battle with only a sword and shield, or right now just a shield. Of course, that was only if Jaune wanted it. The last thing he wanted to do was force a person to take up a weapon they had no intention of using. That was just a waste of time and energy.

 

“Felipe! You’re up!” Jaune’s and Pyrrha’s organizer called out. The White Knight steeled himself, then strode forward to accept the offered gun.

 

“Don’t shoot yourself in the foot now, kid!” a fellow recruit mocked and laughed, alongside a few fellows. Jaune frowned, but otherwise didn’t let it get to him. A target was set up down a makeshift range, which to Jason’s, Jaune’s and Pyrrha’s disgust was modeled very clearly off of James Gordon.

 

Despite being unable to see her, they could all feel Oracle’s outrage at the sight, but otherwise, they bit their tongues and stayed quiet.

 

“Well? We’re waiting, Felipe,” the organizer declared impatiently. Jaune nodded, then took a deep breath and aimed downrange. He fired, the first shot hitting the edge of the target but outside of the Gordon-outline. Jaune fired again, this time hitting closer but still not quite entering. A few more shots were fired, only the last finally hitting the upper shoulder, then the gun clicked empty.

 

“Get in back,” the organizer said, clearly disappointed in Jaune’s performance. To both Jason and Pyrrha, however, Jaune’s performance wasn’t unexpected. Although Jaune wasn’t the best marksman among them, he could get off a few accurate shots. Both of them knew that Jaune deliberately sabotaged himself, likely because even as a target, he didn’t want to fire on Jim Gordon.

 

“Nice aim!” the same recruit as before mocked, a wicked grin plastered across his face. Unfortunately for him, by this point, Pyrrha had already moved closer to him, and the look on her face showed that she was not happy at the man’s treatment of her partner.

 

“Issa, you’re up!” the organizer shouted. Pyrrha nodded, then as she stepped past the heckler, she kicked her heel between his legs faster than anyone could blink, and his laughter immediately shifted into a pained wheeze as he collapsed to his knees.

 

“Oh, I am _so_ sorry!” Pyrrha faux-apologized. The man glared at her, but the look on Pyrrha’s face told him to be quiet, not that he was in any state to actually formulate a coherent sentence.

 

“Issa!” the organizer called out again impatiently. The red head hurried over and grabbed the gun from the man’s hand. She steadied herself, then after a momentary pause, her hand shook slightly. Bullets fired, and like Jaune, only a few managed to hit her target. The organizer frowned, then sent her back, but she didn’t care. Jason, however, frowned slightly.

 

“Malone!” his announcer called out. Without saying a word, Jason walked over and grabbed the gun, took aim at his target, and quickly fired his entire magazine. All of his shots landed true on the target’s head, and just as quickly as he began, he emptied the gun and handed it back. His group was stunned into silence, but Jason didn’t respond as he went back to his previous position.

 

Just as he did, he received a text across his contacts.

 

“ _Evidence found. Probable long-term alliance between Black Mask and Two-Face,_ ” Batgirl texted him, alongside Jaune and Pyrrha. Jason bit back a curse. He already knew, from the assortment of Two-Face goons alongside them, that such an alliance was a possibility, but Batgirl’s assessment made it suddenly more urgent. They had to figure out a way to stop it, but first, they had to get out. He turned towards his partners’ group, only to not see them there. He looked around the room but, to his growing alarm, saw no trace.

 

“Oh, goddammit…” he cursed, just as the organizer announced the next test.

 

~

 

Jaune personally thought he and Pyrrha were doing a pretty good job blending in. Sure, there were a few hiccups here and there, but nothing they couldn’t recover from. Their ‘fellow recruits’ seemed to buy into their acts, although both of them had to admit that wasn’t the greatest benchmark in the world. So, it was a surprise when they were both singled out by their organizer after their tests and told to head to the back of the room, away from the others.

 

Worry seeped into them. Had Black Mask and Two-Face’s men figured out who they really were? None of the criminals around them were paying that much attention to them, more focused on the recruits before them. A few were even taking notes on recruits that caught their eye. That brought some relief to them, but when they reached the end of the room, they were greeted by the same recruiter who brought them all in. A frown was on his face, and both Jaune and Pyrrha tensed.

 

“You two, with me,” he ordered, then began to walk down the hall. Jaune and Pyrrha shared a look, then tepidly followed after him. The sounds of the recruitment drive slowly faded away as they went further and further into the hall, and before long they found themselves outside the main door and in the cool night air. The recruiter looked around for anyone listening in, and when he found none, turned to face both of them.

 

“What do you think you’re doing?” he asked in an accusatory tone.

 

“I…don’t understand?” Jaune replied, already thinking of ways to take the man down.

 

“I thought we were doing well?” Pyrrha admitted, her train of thought running concurrently with Jaune’s.

 

“Don’t lie to me,” the recruiter shot back, thrusting a finger towards them. “You two… You’re not some inner-city kids, are you?”

 

Jaune and Pyrrha stayed silent, which was apparently all the recruiter needed to hear.

 

“I thought so. Ever since you, girly, lashed out at me. That _screamed_ ‘I don’t know what I’m doing.’ You two aren’t a couple of kids from a poor neighborhood trying to join a gang…”

 

Jaune and Pyrrha prepared to pounce, clenching their fists tightly.

 

“... You two are from one of Gotham’s good neighborhoods.”

 

Suddenly both heroes-in-training felt the wind taken out of their sails. Realization hit them. The recruiter didn’t think they were cops or disguised heroes,  just a pair of kids in way over their heads.

 

“Uh…I don’t know what you’re saying, dog!” Pyrrha protested, only for the recruiter to shoot her a look.

 

“Yeah, that right there is what tipped me off. You were trying _way_ too hard to sound like you were from a rough neighborhood.”

 

Pyrrha couldn’t help but deflate. Hearing the criticism from her friends was one thing, but to hear from an actual criminal that she was trying too hard was rubbing salt in the wound. Part of Jaune found it humorous, but at the moment he was focused more on navigating them out of this.

 

“And let’s not forget about you, Mr. Goody Two Shoes. Both of you, really. I know you guys can fight, you were dancing circles around the other recruits, but it was too clean. Too orderly, like you didn’t really want to hurt them. In this line of work, that’s a problem.”

 

Now Jaune and Pyrrha were confused. The recruiter noticed this, then sighed and rubbed his short brown hair.

 

“Look, I’m gonna level with ya. I don’t know your full story, but if I had to guess: the both of you came from nice, stable homes. Mom and dad both together, maybe a few siblings, very lovey-dovey. You two seem like smart kids, good grades in school with plenty of friends. But you felt it was boring. You wanted excitement, and when your friend Malone and his sister told you they were going to join Black Mask, you decided to follow along.”

 

“Um…yes,” Jaune admitted, amazed at how close yet wrong the recruiter actually was. He nodded, then stuffed his hands into his coat pocket.

 

“Thought so. Look, this life… I know movies and tv like to play it up, but it’s rough. Real rough. Too rough for kids like you to survive. They’ll eat you alive, and I cannot in good conscience let you two throw away your lives like this. Not when you have good futures ahead of you, not like the rest of us. Got it?”

 

Jaune and Pyrrha looked at each other for a moment, unsure of how to respond. Before they could, however, the recruiter continued.

 

“Now get outta here,” he ordered, turning around to walk back in, mumbling under his breath, “Crazy lovebirds…”

 

Again, both partners were stunned into silence, although now a faint blush stretched across their faces. The recruiter, his back still turned to them, went back inside the steel mill and locked the doors behind him. Jaune and Pyrrha remained silent, staring at the double doors with an incredulous expression.

 

“… You know, for a criminal, he was surprisingly nice,” Pyrrha noted.

 

“Yeah…” Jaune nodded, then realized their current predicament. “Ah, crap.”

 

Pyrrha realized it, too, and groaned. “Great… I am so sorry for—”

 

“Don’t apologize,” Jaune cut her off, then gestured towards the gate with his head. She caught the signal, then the two of them walked towards it, pushed it open slightly, then walked across the street into a dark alleyway. Once they were alone, Jaune and Pyrrha pressed their fingers to their ears and scaled an old fire escape.

 

“Oracle, we have a problem,” Jaune declared as they went up the building.

 

“ _I noticed,_ ” Oracle responded. “ _You two got kicked out._ ”

 

“We did, unfortunately, but Red Hood and Batgirl are still in there.”

 

“ _Just Red Hood, actually. Batgirl was able to accomplish her objective and is currently waiting on the roof of the mill for extraction. Red Hood, however…_ ”

 

“He’s undergoing initiation, isn’t he?” Jaune guessed with a blank stare just as he and his partner entered the rooftop. They found a small nook where they stashed their costumes, then took them out to change into them.

 

“ _Yes. It appears that he played his part a little_ too _well,_ ” Oracle muttered. “ _Not going to let him live this one down…_ ”

 

“Better than me,” Pyrrha murmured under her breath, to which Jaune patted her on the shoulder. They were both garbed in their costumes, their helmets masking their faces completely from the outside world.

 

“ _Regardless, we need to get him out of there as soon as possible._ ”

 

“What about the potential alliance?” Jaune asked.

 

“ _Putting one or both in jail would more than suffice._ ”

 

“Figured. We’ll call in once we have a plan,” Jaune replied, then closed the comms channel. He saw Pyrrha waiting for him at the edge of the building, and when he joined her, the two of them pulled out their grapple guns and pulled themselves to a large tower on the outer edge of the steel mill. They perched themselves around its upper rim, and upon hearing a flutter of cloth, turned to see Batgirl perched next to them.

 

“How many guards?” Jaune asked, referring to the snipers he knew were around the complex. Batgirl held up both hands, then closed them both tightly. He and Pyrrha immediately understood what she was telling them and nodded.

 

“Good job,” Pyrrha said, unfolding Miló and resting it against her shoulder. “Now, all we have to do is figure out how to get him out of there.”

 

Jaune hummed, rubbing against the chin of his helmet, then noticed that Batgirl was staring pointedly at Pyrrha. She didn’t seem to notice, instead focused on what was before her and allowing Jaune and Batgirl to stare at each other. She gestured her head to the side, bringing Jaune’s attention to the words atop the iron gate. He narrowed his eyes behind his helmet, then they widened as he realized what she was implying.

 

In hindsight, it was so obvious.

 

“Guardian,” Jaune spoke up, catching Pyrrha’s attention.

 

“Yes?” Pyrrha asked, turning her head to look at him.

 

“We’re in a steel mill.”

 

“Yes? How does that…” Pyrrha paused. “Ohhhh.”

 

“Yep. As your team leader, I hereby order you to take your Semblance and go nuts. If you’re up to it, of course.”

 

Jaune’s tone was joking, which Pyrrha immediately understood. Yet at the same time, she couldn’t help but smile, collapse Miló, and crack her knuckles from the issued challenge.

 

~

 

Jason cursed himself under his breath, his mumbling drowned out by the scattered conversations around him. Part of him had expected the mission to go wrong in some way, but he admittedly thought it would be more along the lines of their ruse being found out. Instead, to his chagrin, Jason found that the opposite had occurred. The plan had worked, mostly. From what he could gather, the recruiter who led them in felt Jaune and Pyrrha weren’t true gangster material and escorted them out, thus removing them from the equation. No one had yet registered Batgirl’s disappearance, on account of her small and quiet stature. Not even their recruiter. No, they weren’t the issue.

 

Instead, Jason found that he had played his part a bit too well. He had passed, apparently with flying colors. Several of the ‘judges’, for lack of a better word, even congratulated him. It made him sick.

 

Those who had ‘passed’ the initiation were being separated from those who had ‘failed’. Part of him wondered if the failures were going to be punished or even killed, but instead, they were being accepted into Two-Face’s gang. The more he thought about it, the more that made sense. After all, supposedly the two crime lords were trying to build an alliance. Black Mask giving Two-Face his rejects after a recruitment drive would be a gesture of goodwill, while also serving as a reminder who was supposed to be in charge. After all, in the end, Two-Face was left with the scraps while Black Mask got the cream of the crop. That information was something he could use, potentially. Assuming that he managed to get out of this, of course.

 

“Everyone, quiet down!” one of Two-Face’s lieutenants shouted as a double-door swung open. Two-Face and Black Mask strode out, Sionis rubbing down his white suit while Two-Face continued to flip his scarred coin. Jason glared at Black Mask, part of him wishing that he had at least one of his guns on hand to put the bastard down. With Two-Face, however, Jason couldn’t find it in himself to view him in the same light. True, both men had done heinous acts over the years of comparable violence, but the difference lied in the men themselves. Harvey Dent, before his attack, was a genuinely good man. An honorable one, who considered himself an ally to both Commissioner Gordon and Jason’s father. He even put into jail hundreds of Falcone, Triad, Yakuza and Maroni gangsters. But, in the end, the loss of his fiancé and the severe damage to his face by a Maroni acid attack inside a courthouse broke his sanity, turning him into the broken shell he was today. Jason could only find pity for the man.

 

Roman Sionis, on the other hand, deserved only contempt in Jason’s eyes. The man was perfectly sane, had no real justifications as to why he did what he did. Roman was little more than human scum, and if Jason could, he would like nothing more than to put him in the ground where he belonged.

 

Jason was reminded of this as Black Mask and Two-Face scanned the room. Behind his mask, Jason knew that a wicked smile was plastered across Sionis’ face, while Two-Face altered between a dark and calm expression by the whims of a coin flip. Two-Face continued to flip his coin while Black Mask stepped forward, crossing his arms behind his back.

 

“Congratulations, all of you,” Black Mask started as he began to pace in front of them. “You all made a good choice, coming to me. Coming to us.” He gestured towards Two-Face, but even Harvey could understand the message in those words and frowned. “Even if you didn’t qualify to be one of my men, rest assured that together, this city will be ours.”

 

Excitement began to build up in the crowd, while Jason began slowly shuffling to the back. It was too tight, however, and he found that he couldn’t get very far. He frowned again, looking around the room to find a way out, only to suddenly see words flash across his contacts.

 

‘ _Get ready,_ ’ Pyrrha texted him. In the distance, Jason began to hear the faint grinding of metal, and he couldn’t help but let out a knowing smile.

 

“For too long, men like us have been forced into hiding,” Black Mask continued. “Men like us used to rule this city. Falcone, Maroni, Bertinelli and many more. We had the press, we had the politicians, and we had the police. No one could touch us, and we were unstoppable. Until _he_ showed up. The Batman.”

 

The crowd booed, which Black Mask clearly appreciated. “Yes, we’ve all dealt with him one time or another. How many friends and family of ours has he thrown into prison? What’s even worse is that, ever since the Batman appeared, others like him started showing up. People like Scarecrow, Clayface, Killer Croc, and the Joker! Well, my friends, that ends tonight!”

 

The crowd erupted into applause, and rather than stop it Black Mask talked over the noise. At the same time, more grinding could be heard, this time a bit louder. “Starting tonight, all of us, both Sionis and Dent, will work to take our city back! We’ll rip the floor out from underneath the Penguin, put down the Joker, and kill the Batman! Along with anyone else who even thinks of standing in our way!”

 

If the applause was loud before, it was thunderous now. The crowd was up and moving, which incidentally created enough space for Jason to weave his way to the back of the room. His attention was focused squarely on Black Mask, who continued to give a ‘speech’ about the great and terrible things they were about to inflict onto Gotham City. Another frown crossed his face, but he calmed himself by leaning against a back wall and began counting down.

 

“Five…four…three…” Some men near Jason finally began to notice his location and started to turn in confusion, but he didn’t care as the grinding now became thunderous enough to catch everyone’s attention. “Two…”

 

“What the hell is that noise?” Black Mask complained, but Two-Face’s eyes widened.

 

“One.”

 

At once, the room erupted into chaos as large metal pipes, each several tons in weight, were hurled from the outside and through the room, finally stopping against the opposite wall. Criminals dived out of the way, but some were unfortunate enough to be struck by chunks of debris and knocked to the ground with enough force to knock them out. None were crushed, although a few were injured. As Jason whisked out of the building, he couldn’t help but marvel at Pyrrha’s accuracy.

 

“We’re under attack!” he heard someone shout.

 

“By who?!” another responded. Then, as though in response, Jason jaw the Batmobile plow through the iron gate and skid to a stop in front of the hole.

 

“It’s the freakin’ Bat!” scores of criminals responded just the Batmobile began to fire rubber slugs into the meeting room. A few criminals were hit, knocking several of them down while forcing the rest to scatter, allowing Jason to move behind the vehicle and access its storage compartment.

 

“Took you long enough!” Red Hood said as he pulled out his costume and began to change into it.

 

“Says the man who almost joined a gang!” Jaune responded as he hopped out of the Batmobile just as Pyrrha lifted a metal truck and hurled it in front of the front doors of the steel mill. A quick glance told Jason that Pyrrha had done the same to many of the smaller doors scattered around, leaving only the large gaping hole she had created just before.

 

“We’re good!” she announced, pulling out Miló and peppering the recovering criminals with rubber bullets. Jason, meanwhile, pulled out both of his pistols and began firing akimbo into the crowd.

 

“Oracle, dispatch GCPD to our location! Sionis Industries!” Red Hood announced as he continued firing. As more criminals went down, he reloaded and began to advance. By now, he had switched out the rubber bullets with actual, and he didn’t really care if his partners objected. Besides, he had a target to take out and now was as good a time as any.

 

~

 

“Dammit!” Black Mask cursed as he crouched behind cover. Everything had gone to hell. Many of his men and recruits were already down, the Batmobile was firing heavy slugs at anyone who even thought about poking their heads out, and a lady dressed like a futuristic Spartan was firing a rifle alongside Red Hood.

 

“Boss, we can’t get out!” one of his men shouted as they repeatedly tried to open the door, only find a car barring the way.

 

“This way, too!” another shouted, this one from Two-Face’s gang. Under his mask, Sionis snarled. Two-Face, on the other hand, remained calm even as he crouched behind cover. One of his men had handed him an assault rifle with an underslung grenade launcher, but he wasn’t keen on firing it just yet.

 

“How did they get here so fast?!” Black Mask demanded to know, not caring who answered him. To his annoyance, Two-Face decided to do so.

 

“It appears that you may have had a rat,” Two-Face accused in a scratchy voice, pointedly staring at the crime lord.

 

“What? Are you saying that-?”

 

“I’m saying that someone snuck in during your recruitment,” Two-Face clarified as he loaded a grenade into his grenade launcher. “It was a smart move. Something I would’ve done.”

 

Black Mask stared at Two-Face for a few moments, then slowly realized that he was right. Someone, he didn’t know who, had snuck inside and alerted these heroes about what they were doing? But how? They’d kept everything sealed tight. There was no way any of this should have leaked. Unless…

 

“You,” Black Mask growled at Two-Face, who stared impassively towards him. “You led them right to us, didn’t you?”

 

“Me? No,” Two-Face denied, but Black Mask wasn’t buying.

 

“Don’t you lie to me!” he shouted, pointing his gun at his face. Again, Two-Face stared at him passively, completely unimpressed.

 

“Are you threatening me, Sionis?” Two-Face asked, taking out his coin and holding it in one hand while holding onto his rifle’s grip with the other.

 

“What kinda question is that?” Black Mask snarled. “Here you stand, in my turf as my guest, and you repay me by selling me out!?”

 

Black Mask pulled back the hammer of his gun and pressed it against the vertical seam on Dent’s forehead. Again, Dent said nothing, instead flipping the coin into the air. Annoyed, Black Mask caught it in mid-air, preventing it from falling into Dent’s awaiting hand.

 

“Enough of that shit, you sunova-!”

 

Two-Face fired his rifle into Black Mask’s gut. Several high-caliber rounds tore through his body, and Sionis felt a sharp pain. In a daze, Black Mask fell the ground, futilely clutching at the holes and releasing his grip on both his gun and the silver coin, which landed scarred-side up.

 

“I didn’t sell you out, Sionis,” Two-Face said as he picked the coin off the ground. Black Mask’s breathing became shallow, and more of Two-Face’s men began to join him. “But it’s obvious you can’t be trusted. No deal.”

 

With that, Two-Face turned around and aimed his rifle at the opposite wall, then fired his grenade launcher. A hole was blasted through to the other side, leading straight to the Gotham River.

 

“Boss, what do we do?” one his lieutenants asked. In response, Two-Face flipped his coin again, then held the scarred side up to his face.

 

“We’re leaving,” he announced, turning around to face the scattered survivors. “Anyone who wants to join, feel free.”

 

“But boss! The Batmobile!” one of Black Mask’s recruits pointed out, having quickly made his decision about who his allegiance belonged to. Two-Face nodded at this, then gestured towards a group of Black Mask’s men.

 

“You,” he pointed to all of them. “I know for a fact that Sionis has something out back that can cover us. I want you to release it.”

 

“I…” one of them muttered, only for another Batmobile shot to send a brave criminal flying back into a wall. Two-Face raised an eyebrow in response, then the men nodded quickly.

 

“You got it, boss!” they declared, then sprinted out of the newly opened hole. Two-Face watched them go, then loaded another grenade into his rifle.

 

“Everyone else!” he shouted as he fired the grenade into the Batmobile, “either pile out or grab a gun! You make it out of here, you’re in. Got it?”

 

“Yessir!” the criminals shouted. A few of Black Mask’s more loyal men were already being beaten down by Two-Face’s, leaving only the men and women willing to work for him. Two-Face didn’t really care, but more men in his gang was always a good thing. Now he just had to get out, but if his hunch was right, Sionis had just the thing to do it.

 

Two-Face then felt a limp hand grasp his ankle, and he looked down to see a bloodied Black Mask glaring up at him.

 

“Damn…you…” he said before going still. Two-Face said nothing, then flipped a coin. He watched it twirl in the air, ascending up then falling back down into his hand. When he opened it, he was greeted by the sight of a pristine silver dollar, and Two-Face made his decision.

 

“Someone get me a med-kit.”

 

~

 

“Oh God, oh God, oh God!” one of the criminals muttered as he ran through the steel mill, dodging a thrown Batarang as Batgirl chased after him. There were five of them originally, now whittled down to two. She had been on them almost instantly, taking down the first two in just a few seconds. The worst part, in his opinion, was that he couldn’t even try to fight back. Both because he knew they had no chance to take her down but also because everyone else’s fate depended on at least one of them reaching their objective. Part of him felt it was heroic, but he knew better.

 

“Jules, go!” his comrade shouted as he stopped and ripped a pipe from its foundation. Jules didn’t even look back as he sprinted past a steel column beam. He heard struggle behind him, then a shrill scream and the crack of bone. He forced himself not to look, instead rounding a corner and heading straight towards the chained-up shipping container. Funny how just an hour before he was here dumping a fresh body, but now he had to get something out of it. Jules unlocked the crate, throwing aside the chains and preparing to open it, then felt something wrap around his leg.

 

“Oh, shi-!” he started, then a fierce tug pulled him back screaming into the darkness behind him. He felt small fists rain down on his head, then everything went black.

 

~

 

Batgirl frowned as she put down the last of the runners. She had seen everything from her perch, and she had been both surprised and not surprised. Black Mask accusing Two-Face of treachery wasn’t out of character for him, given his selfish and violent nature, but Two-Face outright shooting him and subsequently taking control of his gang wasn’t something she expected. Looking back, perhaps Dent had planned for this possibility? Despite having lost his sanity years ago, Dent still held the sharp mind he once used as Gotham’s district attorney, so it was a distinct possibility.

 

She then looked at the now opened crate. The men she had been chasing had been so intent on reaching it, but why? Batgirl thought back to when she saw the very same men dump a few bodies inside, and a deep curiosity filled her. Slowly, with the sounds of battle coming from behind her, she went towards the crate and fully opened it.

 

The smell was what hit her first. It was revolting, a stench of death and decay. Dozens of bodies were crowded into the container, some quite fresh while others were weeks old. Flies buzzed around the corpses, and Batgirl had to force herself not to gag. But what she was most interested in was the large corpse chained to the back. Unlike the others, who were either slumped over or dumped into piles, this one was chained up in a way that made it rest on its two feet. Hooks dug into its flesh, yet there were no signs of dried blood on them. Dozens of knives, cleavers, blades and even bits of rebar poked out of its back, several of which were rusted. Dark, moldy and tattered clothes covered his chest and legs, and stark-white tuffs of hair rested atop his head. His face was looking down, dead to the world, but Batgirl couldn’t quite get a good look at him.

 

But he did look familiar. More familiar by the second, and with wide eyes she began to back away. When she took a step, however, the body twitched, and she froze in response. A low, guttural growling began to escape the corpse’s throat, and the arms twitched to life and struggled against the chains.

 

“Solomon Grundy…” he began as the chains stretched. “Born on a Monday.”

 

The chain on his legs snapped, allowing him to step forward as Batgirl stepped back again, now holding a Batarang in her hand.

 

“Christened on a Tuesday.”

 

 The chain attached to his left arm snapped first, followed shortly by the right. The corpse then reached out and grabbed hold of the chains crossing his chest and neck, then with a mighty pull broke them in half. His head remained down, then he shot it up to glare his grey eyes into hers.

 

“Married on a Wednesday!”

 

With that final shout, Solomon Grundy charged, barreling through the steel shipping container as though it was tissue paper.

 

~

 

When Jaune had heard the explosion coming from the back of the room the criminals were cowering in, he had immediately raced around the building in an attempt to head them off. Although he only had his shield with him, it was thus far proving to be enough as he battered aside another with a sideways swing.

 

“Just surrender!” he offered, ducking underneath a thrown punch and responding with a shield-bash. Another came at him with a metal pipe, which Jaune caught easily. Jaune headbutted the man, then took the pipe and twirled it in his hands.

 

“Seriously, you’re just making this worse for yourselves,” he noted, but the men around him didn’t care. Several charged, which Jaune ran into. As he fended them off with punches, kicks, swipes, and bashes, he couldn’t help but note that, had he done this less than a year ago, he would have been the one who’d gotten his butt kicked. Now he was the one dishing out the pain, and he had to admit it felt good to contribute.

 

He heard a whiz, and barely thrust his arm in front of him in time to stop the grenade as it exploded against his shield. The blast sent him flying back into a nearby steel support beam, denting it slightly. Jaune shot up to his feet and saw Two-Face standing in front of him with his assault rifle held at the waist.

 

“Well, if it ain’t a little White Knight,” Two-Face noted, loading another grenade into his rifle. Behind him, more men made a break for it, most being cut down by Pyrrha, Red Hood, or the autonomous Batmobile, but a few managed to clear out.

 

“So, you must be Two-Face. Gotta say, I can see why,” Jaune noted with bravado, settling into a familiar stance. He knew who the man before him was, what exactly had befallen him, but right now Jaune had a job to do.

 

“You know,” Two-Face continued, “I used to be called that. ‘The White Knight of Gotham.’ Back when I fought for the law. Back before the world turned its back on me.”

 

“Spare me the sob story,” Jaune interrupted the criminal’s spiel.

 

Two-Face frowned, then shrugged. “Have it your way.”

 

Another grenade was fired, but this time Jaune was ready. He bashed it aside with his shield, the grenade careening wildly and striking against a gasoline tanker without exploding. Jaune seized his chance and charged towards Harvey, who decided against loading another grenade and instead began firing his fully-automatic rifle into his opponent. Jaune blocked the rounds with his shield, then swung his metal pipe towards Dent.

 

Two-Face managed to swivel out of the way, hitting the butt of his gun into Jaune’s back and sending the White Knight stumbling forward. He took the chance to fire a few rounds into Jaune’s armored back, who dove out of the way and behind a parked car. Two-Face frowned, then calmly walked around the car while loading a fresh grenade.

 

“A word of advice kid. This town, this world, it chews up people like you. People who just want to make a difference, make things better,” Two-Face ranted. “I fought for law and justice for years and look where that got me. Best quit while you’re ahead.”

 

“You don’t mean that!” Jaune shouted as he braced his shoulder against the chassis, hoping to talk him down. “I know you still believe in the law!”

 

“Part of me does,” Harvey admitted, then pulled out his coin and flipped it. When it landed, he snarled. “But the rest only believes in chance!”

 

Just before Harvey rounded the corner, Jaune struck. He heaved against the side of the vehicle, sending it skidding into a gobsmacked Two-Face and slamming him off his feet into a crumpled pile. Jaune hastily jumped onto his back, pinning his legs to the ground and holding both wrists together as a few leaks emerged from the tanker.

 

“It’s over, Two-Face,” Jaune said.

 

From the heavily scarred side of his face, Two-Face snarled at Jaune. He struggled, trying to break free, but the former huntsman-in-training’s grip was too strong. Two-Face seemed to acknowledge this, then they both heard a bang. Several bangs and thuds, coming from the water’s edge. Both men turned their attention towards it, then saw Batgirl running for dear life from a large, hulking mass.

 

“What the hell is that?” Jaune asked, stupefied, while Two-Face looked on in surprise. He had to admit, the didn’t think Sionis had _him._

 

When Batgirl ran past a parked car, she jumped and twirled to throw a trio of explosive Batarangs into it. When the monster drew close, the Batarangs exploded, engulfing the creature in a fireball. But, to Jaune’s surprise, it merely strode out of the fire completely unimpeded, ignoring the charred flesh the blast created. Then, with a snarl, it picked up the still burning car effortlessly and hurled it towards Batgirl, who had just managed to make it to Jaune and Two-Face.

 

“Move!” Jaune shouted, grabbing hold of Two-Face and diving out of the way just as the burning car slammed onto the ground like a meteor where they just were. Jaune stumbled as he tried to maintain balance, but in doing so released his hold on Two-Face, who immediately ripped the pipe from his hands and slammed it across the back of Jaune’s head.

 

“Gagh!” Jaune grunted, not expecting the attack. He moved to retaliate, only to see a pair of headlights speeding right towards him and through the hole in the brick wall. Jaune dove out of the way as a large garbage collector skidded to a halt past where Jaune stood, and Two-Face promptly swung onto the passenger side of the cab and motioned for the driver to get out of there.

 

“No!” Jaune shouted as he futilely tried to stop the escaping criminal, but the creature was on him again. Jaune dived to the side as a chunk of concrete shattered against the ground, allowing Two-Face the opportunity to drive off into the night. “Dammit!”

 

“ _What happened?!_ ” Red Hood shouted into the radio as Jaune ran from the monstrosity and Batgirl threw more and more explosive Batarangs into it to no effect.

 

“A big freaking zombie happened!” Jaune answered, prepping an ice-grenade and throwing it into the zombie. “Two-Face got away!”

 

“ _Dammit!_ ” Red Hood cursed. Jaune looked back at the zombie, watching as the ice-grenade exploded across its chest, a coat of ice engulfing its frame and freezing it solid. For a moment, he thought that was enough, only for the ice to shatter as the creature broke free.

 

“Aaagh! White Knight hurt Solomon Grundy! Solomon Grundy hurt White Knight!” the zombie shouted just as Red Hood entered through the broken hole. He took one look at the monster, then immediately fired both of his pistols into its head.

 

“Shit! It’s Solomon Grundy!” Red Hood shouted as he fired again and again.

 

“Yeah, I figured!” Jaune shouted, diving out of the way as Solomon slammed both of his clasped fists into the ground, forming a small crater. He prepared to attack again, only for Pyrrha to suddenly lift a car with her Semblance and hurl it into Solomon Grundy. The zombie skidded back, digging in his heels and leaning back, but he was able to maintain his balance. He glared at Pyrrha, then hurled the car back towards her. She swiped it aside with her Semblance, breathing heavily under the strain of using it so heavily earlier, and barely dove out of the way as Solomon Grundy ignored all attacks on him and slammed into the wall she had just previously been in front of.

 

“How do we take this guy down?!” Pyrrha asked, shifting Miló into its sword configuration.

 

“ _You need to take out the heart!_ ” Oracle answered.

 

“How do we do that?!” Jaune asked, only for Solomon to charge towards him. He tried to dive out of the way, but Solomon sidestepped towards him and drove his large fist into Jaune’s body. Despite his rather large Aura reserves, Jaune felt as though he was hit by a truck and had the air forced out of his lungs. He flew back, striking against the fuel tanker. He rebounded, landing in the puddle of gasoline in a groan.

 

“…uggh,” he groaned, and in an instant, he felt Pyrrha upon him. She lifted him to his feet while Batgirl and Red Hood threw explosives onto the zombie, and Pyrrha took the opportunity to take him to safety.

 

“Oracle, bring the Batmobile over here!” Pyrrha requested.

 

“ _On it!_ ” Oracle replied. From the other side of the steel mill, they heard the Batmobile’s engine roar to life and charge through the building. One criminal who had managed to escape the original onslaught was grazed by the speeding car, only to feel intense electricity course through his body and send him flying back into a metal railing, knocking him out. The Batmobile plowed into Solomon Grundy, carrying him into a brick wall and embedding him into it. It then backed up, leaving Grundy behind who remained still.

 

“Think that did it?” Jaune asked, hoping for a positive answer. Instead, Solomon Grundy twitched and began to tear his way out of the wall. “Of course not.”

 

“You really need to stop asking questions you already know the answer to,” Red Hood noted while reloading his guns.

 

“Yeah, I know, but still.” Jaune sighed, then pressed his fingers to the side of his helmet. “Oracle, blast that thing!”

 

“ _With pleasure,_ ” Oracle said, then fired the main cannon into Grundy’s chest. The zombie roared in pain, and they saw part of his massive chest cave in. But it wasn’t enough, and Grundy tore his way out of the wall and roared again.

 

“ _Oh, come on!_ ” Oracle shouted into the radio as she backed the Batmobile up and fired again. The heavy shell cracked Grundy’s ribs, but he kept going. She fired another round, but it wasn’t enough to stop Grundy as he moved to the side and lifted the Batmobile up off the ground. He flipped it onto its side, where it skidded a few feet before finally resting.

 

“Ah, crap,” Jaune muttered as Grundy finally acknowledged their presence. He roared yet again, then charged the four heroes as they pulled out their grappling hooks and zipped away, leaving him behind.

 

“I really thought that was going to work,” Red Hood admitted, then Batgirl pointed to Grundy’s chest. Despite him whirling around like a wounded animal, Jaune could see some of the exposed ribs, as could Red Hood and Pyrrha.

 

“You’re right, it created enough of an opening,” Pyrrha stated, resting on one knee.

 

“One problem,” Jason pointed out, “the rib cage is still there, even if its heavily damaged. None of our weapons are strong enough to penetrate.”

 

“Gods, what I wouldn’t give to have Yang or Nora here right now,” Jaune muttered under his breath as he tried to find a way to break through. Then, he spotted the still leaking fuel tanker, and off to the side, he saw Two-Face’s discarded assault rifle. Pyrrha knew the look Jaune was giving underneath his helmet and patiently waited for him to speak. Then, with his hastily made plan finalized, he turned to face his comrades.

 

“I have an idea,” Jaune stated, and Red Hood and Batgirl looked at him.

 

“Don’t leave us in suspense,” Red Hood replied, and Jaune nodded then pointed at the tanker. They followed his finger towards the tanker, then at once understood exactly what he was going for.

 

“Got it,” Red Hood acknowledged, pulling out his pistols and zipping himself down towards Solomon Grundy. Batgirl joined him, gliding down to the ground while throwing some explosive Batarangs into the fuel tanker. They blinked ominously, while Jaune and Pyrrha remained on top.

 

“Go,” Jaune ordered, gesturing with his head towards Two-Face’s gun. In knowing response, Pyrrha nodded and jumped down, gracefully landing with a roll. At the top of her roll, she threw Miló like a spear, embedding it into Grundy’s shoulder and causing him to roar in pain.

 

As Red Hood fired his explosive rounds into Grundy’s chest, Batgirl threw heavy bolos around his arms and legs. The thick wires forced him to stand up rigidly, but the zombie quickly began to tear himself free. Pyrrha, refusing to let that happen, pulled Miló from his shoulder and leaped into his head shield-first, knocking him back closer to the leaking tanker.

 

“Gagh! Stupid Red Knight!” Grundy cursed and tried to swipe Pyrrha off of him. She slashed at his hands with Miló, forcing them back as he grunted in pain. She then shifted her sword into its gun configuration, aimed at his chest, and then pulled the trigger repeatedly as fast as she could. The heavy rounds burrowed into his chest, and he roared as he tried to break her off, but she leaped off herself rather than risk injury.

 

Jaune, meanwhile, raced towards Two-Face’s gun. He picked it up after quick-stepping to a stop, then checked both the magazine and the under barrel. Both were filled, although the magazine felt light. He wasn’t even going to guess how many rounds were left, but he didn’t care about that. Instead, he aimed towards Solomon Grundy, his HUD automatically adjusting to show the arc of his shot. Grundy was closer to the tank now, but not close enough. He frowned, then pressed his finger against the grenade launcher’s trigger.

 

“Guys, move!” he shouted. Without even taking a glance, Red Hood, Batgirl, and Pyrrha dove out of the way, allowing Jaune the chance to fire the grenade into Grundy’s chest. The subsequent explosion sent him stumbling back, and Pyrrha took the chance to throw Akoúo̱ into his head to increase his stumbling. Then, all three ran for cover just as Solomon Grundy’s back contacted the tanker.

 

With a beep, all three explosive Batarangs went off, igniting the fuel and causing a large explosion. Glass shattered as a small shockwave ripped through the steel mill. Grundy was consumed by the intense fireball, while the four heroes remained low to the ground as the shockwave passed over them. The crackle of fire filled the air and smoke billowed upward into the atmosphere, and off in the distance they heard sirens speeding towards them. In addition, they saw an airship turn towards the steel mill, apparently finished with what Ruby was having them do earlier.

 

Red Hood breathed heavily, then stood up and faced the destroyed tanker. He stared into it for a few moments, silently daring Solomon Grundy to come out.

 

“Oh, come on. What does it take to kill this guy?” Red Hood cursed as a heavily damaged Solomon Grundy stumbled out of the fire. Chunks of flesh were missing, exposing the bone and rotted organs underneath his grey skin. The flesh around his ribs was completely gone, exposing his shattered ribcage and beating heart. He stared at them for a few moments, then took a step forward.

 

“Took ill on a Thursday,” he mumbled, each step more laborious than the last. “Grew worse…on Friday. Died…on Saturday. Buried on…Sunday. That was the end, of Solomon Grundy.”

 

He stopped before them now, not doing anything. Solomon Grundy wasn’t angry anymore, just a picture of calm acceptance. He was looking at them in a resigned, pleading expression, and at once understanding flowed through the four heroes. They knew what he was asking.

 

He wanted them to end it. None of them knew how to respond, but finally Pyrrha took in a deep breath and walked up to him. Solomon Grundy looked down on Pyrrha, the strength in his legs finally giving way and bringing him to his knees. They stared into each other’s eyes, and Pyrrha gulped.

 

“… I’m sorry,” she apologized, then thrust Miló into his beating heart. Grundy gasped in pain, then stilled. A peaceful smile crossed what was left of his face, then he slumped over to the side. His heart stopped, and Solomon Grundy died. Again. Gently, Pyrrha slid her weapon out, noticing that there wasn’t any blood on its blade.

 

“Come on,” Red Hood gently placed his hand on her shoulder. “Let’s go secure these guys.”

 

Silently, the three heroes nodded. Batgirl took a few more moments to stare at Grundy’s body. Throughout the entire fight, she was able to read what his body was saying. Grundy was in pain the entire time, lashing out like a wounded animal. He only managed to calm down at the end, and to see the zombie not only calmly accept his death but request it was heartbreaking. The only consolation was that he wasn’t in pain when he finally went, plus a bit of hope that this time would be the last.

 

Part of her knew it wouldn’t, and she knew Grundy knew that, too. Quietly, she called the Batwing over, watching it descend beneath the clouds, hover over Grundy’s body, then take it away for safekeeping. She might not be able to prevent his unending cycle, but they could at least make sure he woke up in a safe and sound environment.

 

“Uh, guys? You need to come see this,” Jaune called out, breaking Batgirl’s attention away from Grundy’s corpse. She jogged over to Jaune, as did Red Hood and Pyrrha. They were looking down at Jaune’s feet, and when she finally saw what everyone was looking at, she silently gasped.

 

There, rested against the wall, was the barely breathing body of Roman Sionis. From behind his mask and through labored breaths, he was glaring at them. In one hand, he clutched a chrome pistol, his arm shaking as he tried to lift it up but found himself unable to do so. His other hand was clutching tightly against a hastily applied  and makeshift tourniquet. Lying next to his body was an opened med kit, recently used. He was in obvious pain, and what little skin they could see was rapidly losing its color.

 

Black Mask was bleeding out. How much time he had, they didn’t know.

 

“Good riddance,” Red Hood spat as he holstered his guns and turned to walk away. Pyrrha, Jaune, and Batgirl looked at him in shock. Was he seriously just going to leave him to die? Sure, Black Mask was a notorious and bloodthirsty gangster, but there was a difference between killing a man in self-defense versus leaving him to die. The three heroes looked at each other then back at a hateful Black Mask, then with a frown all came to the same conclusion.

 

“Help me patch him up,” Pyrrha said, and both Jaune and Batgirl nodded as they disarmed Black Mask and began to apply first aid.

 

~

 

“So, Two-Face shot him?” Red Hood asked as they huddled together on a nearby rooftop, and Batgirl nodded. Below, several squad cars swarmed the steel mill as a GCPD airship shined a spotlight on the structure as the arrested criminals were being placed into armored cars. Various weapons, including Two-Face’s gun, were being sorted into evidence piles. All in all, they managed to nab over a hundred criminals, but the fact that Two-Face escaped along with thirty men meant the mission wasn’t a complete success.

 

Mostly the part about Two-Face escaping. As far as Red Hood was concerned, Roman bleeding out was merely karmic comeuppance. At least it would have been, had his partners not decided to save him in time. Now Black Mask was being carted off to one of Gotham’s many hospitals. He would have preferred it to have been to a morgue.

 

“So, what’s our next move?” Pyrrha asked.

 

“ _I need to organize the information Batgirl gathered and combine it with what Dragon managed to pry from the Penguin. Speaking of, he’s arrested. Along with Bane,_ ” Oracle revealed, and Red Hood whistled.

 

“Damn, they took down Penguin _and_ Bane? Musta been a hell of a fight,” Red Hood stated.

 

“ _Indeed, although I couldn’t see most of it. Regardless, head on back to the Batcave. We got what we needed._ ”

 

“What about the disappearances in Robinson Park?” Pyrrha asked, Red Hood having told them after the fight.

 

“ _Still looking through it, but Red Hood was right. There has been a spike in disappearances in the area. Mostly men, ages 18 to 40 working on Gotham’s industrial sector. I’ve already informed Batman._ ”

 

“Keep looking into it. I don’t like this,” Red Hood requested.

 

“ _Neither do I. I’ll see you at the cave._ ”

 

“Understood. We’ll see you there,” Jaune replied, then signed off. The rest of his group signed off as well, then stood up and prepared to jump down into the alleyway below to the waiting Batmobile.

 

“I’ll drive,” Red Hood declared as he jumped off first, slowing himself down with his grappling gun. Batgirl came shortly after him, her cape acting as a parachute. Pyrrha prepared to jump down but then felt Jaune place his hand on her shoulder.

 

“Wait, before we go down there,” he started, bringing Pyrrha’s attention towards him, “we got…interrupted before.”

 

“What are you… Oh,” Pyrrha realized what he was referring to, and underneath her helmet, a crimson blush stretched across her face. “Okay. What…do you want to talk about?”

 

Jaune sighed, then sat down. “Pyrrha, look. Ever since the…lasso incident, I’ve been thinking about, well, everything. Everything between us, and I still don’t how I feel. I care about you, strongly.”

 

“As do I,” Pyrrha responded earnestly. “Look, Jaune, I don’t want to—”

 

“Pyrrha, please,” he begged, and Pyrrha silenced herself. He sighed, then stood up once again. “As I said, I don’t know what my feelings really are. You are my best friend, and nothing means more to me than that.”

 

“Same,” Pyrrha said, beginning to figure out where he was going with this, and her heart rate began to quicken.

 

“But, even if it scares me,” he admitted, then grabbed her hand with his, “even if it’s just for one night…I’m willing to try.”

 

Pyrrha blinked her eyes, then fully acknowledged what Jaune had just said. Her blush deepened, and she gulped.

 

“Right… So am I- I mean, I would like to try. Just one date, obviously.”

 

“Of course, just one! Just to…try and see if it works and now I realize how callous that sounds,” Jaune berated himself, only stopping once Pyrrha chuckled.

 

“It’s okay, I understood what you meant,” she giggled, then grabbed his other hand. “Jaune Arc, I would love to go on a single date with you. And if it doesn’t work out, we’ll still be friends, and nothing would make me happier.”

 

Jaune took a moment, then grabbed Pyrrha’s hand tightly. “So would I.”

 

Far below them, on the alleyway below, a different struggle was occurring as Cassandra was wrestling Jason to the ground, preventing him from spying on what in her mind constituted a heartwarming moment between two good friends. He struggled, but despite both the weight and age difference, Cassandra wouldn’t budge from pinning him to the ground.

 

“Cass, get off me!” he mumbled into the Batmobile’s seat, but Cassandra shook her head. If she could help it, nothing was going to break this moment apart.

 

~

 

He ran through the bushes as fast as he could. He was outside taking a smoke break when the Batmobile plowed through the iron gate, and he didn’t have to take long before he hightailed it out of Sionis Industries. Judging by the gunshots, explosions, and sirens that followed, he made the right choice. Part of him hoped that the two kids he escorted out managed to get away before everything went to hell. Same with the younger sister to Malone, although Malone himself was likely caught up in the ensuing crossfire. The man seemed like hardened criminal material.

 

Pain began to burn in his legs, and he forced himself to stop and catch his breath. Sweat dripped down his forehead, and his heartbeat thundered in his ears. As his breath stabilized, he took a moment to take a look around his environment.

 

“Robinson Park…” he noted, recognizing the park easily. He had recruited many an individual for many gangs over the years. Sionis was only a recent gig, one he took because he paid well. Couldn’t stand the man, though. He was a violent psychopath.

 

“Uggh, great. Now I’m out of a job again,” he muttered under his breath, figuring that Roman was arrested. That aspect of the job wasn’t something he particularly liked, but one he had grown accustomed to. Many of his bosses were taken down before, either by the police, another crime lord, or more often than not the Batman. Still, he had contacts and connections, so he wasn’t too worried. Part of him wondered if he should try going legit, do recruiting for actual business, but threw that aside. No self-respecting business would hire him, so he figured why bother?

 

He pulled out his phone, preparing to call a friend of his for a lift, only to hear a ruffle in the leaves. He whipped around, pulling out a pistol and aiming towards the sound.

 

“Who’s there?!” he shouted, the gun twitching in his hand. There were no streetlights around, only the faint light of the moon. Otherwise, it was pitch black. He could barely even see a few feet in front of him. Then, he began to see a lone figure striding towards him, and he aimed his gun straight towards it.

 

“Stop right there!” he ordered, backing up slightly.

 

“My, my,” a silky, female voice called out. “What’s a big, strong man like yourself doing all alone out here?”

 

“I’m warning you! Stay back!” he responded, clicking the safety off his gun as he recognized her voice.

 

“Are you afraid of me?” she asked. “I don’t bite.”

 

“Lady, I don’t really care, so back off!” he shouted. Only then did the woman stop. The man took a few more steps back, yet he was able to see more distinct features. The hints of long red hair, a tall slender figure, and brilliant green eyes.

 

“I’m sorry, truly. I didn’t mean to scare you,” she cooed in a soft voice as a strange smell began to fill the air. “It’s just, I like to take midnight nature walks, you see, so I was surprised to see you here. I don’t usually have company.”

 

“Is…that so?” he replied, finding it harder to think. He was transfixed onto the woman before him, who was smiling warmly with her lush, vibrant lips.

 

“It gets lonely at times, actually,” she continued, stepping closer to him and sashaying her hips. Under the moonlight, the leafy green dress became exposed, as did her perfect white skin. “Would you like to accompany me tonight?”

 

He wanted to say no. He truly did but found himself unable to. Instead, with his mind fogged and in a trance, he nodded. The woman before him smiled, then hooked her arms around his shoulders and kissed him fully on the lips. Then, his mind was gone.

 

“That’s a good boy,” Poison Ivy said as she began to lead her latest servant further into the park. “Now, darling, do you have any friends? I would just love to meet them.”

 

[~][~]


	31. A Hunters of Justice Halloween Special

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The heroes of Earth and teams RWBY and JNPR celebrate Halloween through horror movies, pranks, and teenage rebellion. But, in another world, another time, the last hope of humanity fights to save what remains of it from an endless horde of undead.

_*Happy, up-tuned, jingly version of Justice League theme*_  
  
Hunters of Justice Chibi!  
  
~  
  
_A RWBY Red Halloween_  
  
~  
  
Ruby skipped into the room happily, a bag in hand.  
  
“Hey, Rubes,” Yang greeted her as she entered. “Just use up some of your birthday money?”  
  
“Oh, I almost forgot that was today!” Weiss said as she looked up from her book. The heiress opened up a drawer and pulled out a small bag of gourmet cookies. “Phew! I remembered this time.” She then gained a proud look on her face. “I’m a great friend.”  
  
Ruby rushed up and pressed their cheeks together. “You most certainly are, Weiss,” she told her while reaching over and taking the cookies. “Anyways, it turns out Earth has Halloween too, and it’s on the same day and everything!”  
  
“Wait, how is that even possible?” Blake asked from her bed.  
  
“Batman said it probably has something to do with a universal spirit of Halloween or something called an Endless. Either way, doesn’t matter. I looked up how Earth people celebrated and got myself a costume. One sec!” Ruby zipped into the bathroom to change. Moments later, she zipped back out. Blake jumped a little but settled right back down while Weiss quirked an eyebrow. Yang, however, jumped up to her feet and dropped everything.  
  
“Ruby! What is that?!”  
  
“It’s a Little Bo Peep costume!” the younger sister answered. “I wasn’t sure what I wanted, but I thought this looked cu-”  
  
“Absolutely not!” Yang yelled with a stomp that shook the room.  
  
“Whaduheck?” Weiss yelped as she fell over.  
  
“Yang, what’s wrong-”  
  
“That is way too small for you!” Yang shouted while throwing a blanket over Ruby. “And it’s showing way too much skin!”  
  
“Is not!” the younger girl protested. “It’s only showing my shoulders and my belly. Weiss and Blake do that all the time.”  
  
“Don’t drag me into this,” Blake objected.  
  
“Those two are grown!” Yang insisted, but Ruby puffed her cheeks indignantly.  
  
“I’m grown!” she insisted.  
  
“You are not. Look,” Yang took a breath and shifted into a pleasant smile and held Ruby close to her, “we’ll go to a costume store and I’ll help you find a  _decent_  one. I’ll even buy it.”  
  
Ruby’s face went as red as both her namesakes as she ground her teeth together and shook in rage. She ripped out of her sister’s hold and then jumped up with a shout.  
  
“I am not a child!” After a few calming breaths, Ruby glared at her sister, who she could tell was about to go back into her argument. “Fine! If I can’t wear this, then I’ll just go get another costume! On my own!”  
  
Ruby zipped back into the bathroom, then left the building while glaring daggers at the blonde. Yang just sighed, but went back to her seat with a sad smile.  
  
“It’s for her own good.”  
  
“You…realize this is far from over?” Blake asked her friends. Weiss nodded sagely while Yang’s eyes went wide with worry.  
  
Their phones all dinged and the Remnantians took them out to see that they’d received an image from Ruby. They stared at it blankly, letting the picture and the situation sink into their heads.  
  
“Well, that’s just-” Weiss began, honestly perplexed more than anything.  
  
“Ruby!” Yang screamed as she rushed out the door.  
  
“Who even associates this kind of getup with bunny women anyways?” Blake asked.  
  
“I don’t honestly know. Earthlings are weird like that.”  
  
~  
  
“Okay, Scarecrow?” Batman spoke into the Batcomputer, on the line with Commissioner Gordon.  
  
“ _Arkham_.”  
  
“Calendar Man?”  
  
“ _Arkham._ ”  
  
“Harleen.”  
  
“ _House arrest_.”  
  
“Joker?”  
  
“ _Arkham_.”  
  
“Hm, try to get them to make sure anything he could fit in a small hole is out of reach  _and_  sight.”  
  
“ _Will do, Batman. Will that be it?_ ”  
  
“For now. Thank you, Gordon. Let me know if you need anything.”  
  
“ _Will do. Commissioner out._ ”  
  
After the screen blipped off, Nora walked up.  
  
“Wow! You have a really specific list for Halloween,” She noted with a whistle  
  
“You should see Christmas season’s list,” Robin spoke up.  
  
“A lot of themed villains feel…obligated to cause mischief on certain holidays,” Batman wearily replied.  
  
“Bummer. That just ruins it for everyone else,” Nora complained. “Well, at least it looks good for now. Let’s go binge-watch black and white horror movies.” She pulled out a DVD case. “I got stuff like Nosferatu, Dawn of the Dead, and like ten different versions of the Wolfman.”  
  
“I’ll get the popcorn,” Ren announced. Nearby, Pyrrha was looking forward to a night of watching movies with friends, but noticed Jaune shaking a little bit.  
  
“Hey, if you’re not fine with watching scary movies…” she started, but he just shook his head.  
  
“What? Me? Scared? Hehehehe, nah! It’s just…cold down here,” Jaune said. And not a single person was convinced.  
  
“All right,” Pyrrha conceded with a light smile. “Just remember, no one’s making you do anything.”  
  
“I’ll be fine,” he insisted.  
  
“Hey, remind me to get a camera,” Damien whispered over to Cassandra, who nodded.  
  
~  
  
Some time later, Team JNPR and the Batfamily were staring at the screen of the Wayne mini-theater. Batman was stoic as ever, but almost everyone else was either sinking into their seats, each other, or shivering in abject fear. Ren had used his Semblance so much that his Aura ran dry a while ago, and now nothing could protect him and Nora from the fear pouring out of the screen.  
  
Jaune, on the other hand, was engrossed. Sometimes he was even in awe at the effects made so long ago or the stories that were being unwoven.  
  
“Whoa! That guy really looks like he grew fur! You can see the follicles and everything!” he declared, amazement filling his voice.  
  
Pyrrha buried her face into his side, wondering how he could be so brave at this moment.  
  
~  
  
After the movie was over, everyone else was trying to recover – in Batman’s case, he was going out to recover the Joker, who broke out a minute ago – while Jaune was just exploring the place.  
  
“I don’t know what everyone was so afraid of,” he wondered aloud. “I mean, we fought actual monsters. And guys in costumes. How were those things scary?”  
  
Somehow, in his absentminded wandering, he entered a hall full of items on pedestals as though on display. Curious, he began looking at a few of them, reading descriptions that connected them to various ne’er-do-wells he’d heard of.  
  
“Scarecrow’s Fearscythe. Fries’ Freeze Ray. Ivy’s Carnivorous Vines. Sheesh, what a variation.”  
  
Suddenly, something reached out and swapped a plaque that read “Red Kryptonite: Keep Away From Superman” to one that said “Get To Superman ASAP”. Jaune turned just after the switch was made and noticed the effervescent stone.  
  
“Whoa, cool! Wait, ‘get to Superman’…? Uh oh, Batman must’ve forgot!” Jaune took the stone and began rushing out of the manor while dialing up the man himself, not hearing the chuckles in the background.  
  
~  
  
“Hey Supes,” Jaune greeted the superhero as he hovered down. “How’s everything going?”  
  
“Well, it seems all of the horror-themed villains are safely locked away at the moment, and Batman put the Joker back up with a mild concussion before he could even do anything," Superman relayed with a relieved sigh. "We might actually have a peaceful Halloween this year.”  
  
“Awesome!” Jaune replied, then remembered why he called Superman to Wayne Manor in the first place. "Oh, I found this weird thing that said-”  
  
As soon as Jaune pulled out the stone, fur sprouted from Superman’s skin all over him with an audible puff. The Man of Steel looked at his fur-covered hand, complete with claws, and sighed.  
  
“Not again,” he groaned.  
  
“Whoa! What just happened?!” Jaune asked, slightly scared that he had harmed the Kryptonian in some way. Superman, however, merely groaned and shook his head before looking Jaune in the eye.  
  
“Red Kryptonite is…weird," Superman explained. "It doesn’t normally take away my powers, but the effects could be pretty much anything. That one, specifically, made me sprout fur and claws for about a week. I thought Bruce put that thing away.”  
  
“That’s weird. The sign under it said to get it to you ASAP.”  
  
“Doesn’t sound like anything Bruce would do. We’ll let him know what happened and…put that thing away, please.”  
  
“Right, on it!” Jaune rushed back into the manor while Superman waited outside. As he wondered whether or not he might be able to shave down the fur on his face, the rest of JNPR exited the building and saw him.  
  
“Oh, hey! Superman,” Nora greeted him with a wave, “when did you-” All of them went stock still when they saw his furry face. He tried to raise a hand, ready to tell them to remain calm, but the three screamed and scattered in terror. He watched them go through lidded eyes, then sighed and hung his head.  
  
“Darn it. That’s going to get old real fast.”  
  
~  
  
“Ruby! No!” Yang yelled as she tried to catch her sister. Weiss and Blake, at this point, were just following along for the entertainment value. Ruby laughed maniacally as she kept ahead of them with ease and looked back to taunt Yang.  
  
“You’ll never catch me! I’m-” Her words stopped as she ran into Jaune and the two collapsed into a pile, which finally allowed Yang to catch up to her.  
  
“Ow, ooh!” Jaune groaned as he clambered to his feet. “Ruby, why are you ru- Ah! What are you wearing?!” he shouted while jumping to his feet, trying and failing to avert his eyes.  
  
“My costume,” the girl proudly announced while jumping to her feet.  
  
“Costume? That’s a bikini, red horns, and a tail.”  
  
“Don’t forget the pitchfork!” she said while brandishing it.  
  
“She’s going through a rebellious phase,” Blake explained.  
  
“She’s  _going_  to put on some actual clothes before I completely lose it!” Yang threatened.  
  
“You’re not my mom!” Ruby objected before throwing the gardening implement, catching her sister by the shirt and pinning her to the wall. “Whoops! Lost part of my costume. Guess I’ll have to get another one.”  
  
“Well, you can’t really get much more revealing than that,” Weiss pointed out. “Here I thought you’d be embarrassed at anyone but us seeing you like that.” Suddenly, Ruby realized who she was standing next to, looked at Jaune, then herself. She shrieked and pulled her cloak around her body before running away.  
  
“Don’t look! Don’t look!” she screamed into the night, her face as red as her namesakes.  
  
“Why did she wear that if she didn’t want anyone to see?!” Yang raged as she pulled herself free.  
  
“That stopped being the point a while ago,” Blake explained. “Rebellion, remember?”  
  
“She’s not supposed to rebel against me, though,” Yang whined as her face went downcast.  
  
“You at least agree that the Bo Peep costume wasn’t that bad now, right?” Weiss asked her.  
  
“Maybe… Way better than the sheep costume.”  
  
“Seriously, what is it with Earthlings and fetishizing animal people?” Blake wondered aloud. “Eh, whatever. Let’s go find her. She’s probably red as Trigon after Jaune got a glimpse of her.”  
  
Red shone in Yang’s eyes before she leaped at the young man, barely restrained by her teammates. Jaune, for his part, ran away screaming.

 

[~][~]

 

 **Hunters of Justice: Elseworlds  
DCeased**  
[~][~]  
_Hall of Justice  
  
Metropolis, Earth  
  
7 Days Post Outbreak  
_  
“Bar the door,” Lex Luthor ordered as he led teams RWBY and JNPR further into the bunker. Behind them were what remained of the Justice League, a paltry handful from an organization that once employed hundreds of superheroes and support personnel from around the world. Despite being their enemy for years, Lex couldn’t help but feel distressed towards what happened.  
  
After everything went to hell. It felt like an eternity ago, yet it had only been a week since the world ended. Not from nuclear war breaking out, or another alien invasion. It wasn’t even something as outlandish as a fight between superpowered beings getting out of hand. No, instead it was a simple virus spreading itself across the internet. Of course, Lex couldn’t call it a simple virus, not after it started implanting the Anti-Life Equation into its victim’s heads, turning them into ravenous hordes of the undead.  
  
“What are we going to do?” Jaune asked as he helped Yang and Nora barricade several layers of doors with whatever they could find. Desks, furniture, crates, and whatever heavy objects that were present.  
  
“We do what we set out to do,” Lex answered, moving deeper into the bunker. Once he got to its deepest point, he took a look around and placed his hands on his hips. “It’s ironic, really. I always tried to tear this place down, and now I’m trying to protect it.”  
  
“You’re not protecting the Hall, Luthor,” Mr. Terrific clarified as he began to pull apart electronics.  
  
Luthor turned his attention to the world’s second smartest man, stared him down, then nodded. “Indeed. I have to admit, I do find a grim satisfaction in this. But that’s for later. We have bigger issues to deal with.”  
  
“Right,” Mr. Terrific said. For as much as the hero despised the man, Mr. Terrific knew there was no one else in existence who could help them solve this crisis. It was a million-to-one shot, and they needed all the help they could get. He felt a hand gently clasp his shoulder, and Mr. Terrific turned to see Wonder Woman smiling at him comfortingly. There was dried blood on the top of her scalp, a bruise marring her left cheek, along with a healthy assortment of various cuts and wounds across her entire person. Her hair was frayed and split, and she was breathing heavily.  
  
“It’s going to work, Michael,” Diana insisted, showing endless strength despite all the pain going through her body. Still, even with her optimistic outlook, he wasn’t so sure.  
  
“How do you know that?” he asked quietly. “We’ve lost John, Shayera, J’onn. The Titans were the first to go, Atlantis fell days ago, and…” Mr. Terrific sighed. “We lost Clark, Diana. Got infected stopping Barry.”  
  
Any other day, Lex Luthor would have been over the moon to hear Superman’s long-fabled secret identity, but now he simply didn’t care. When the Man of Steel fell to the infection, Lex felt a strange pain course through his heart, something that he didn’t think he would feel. He had been trying for years to end the alien’s existence, but now that it happened, he derived no satisfaction from it.  
  
“His sacrifice won’t be in vain,” Lex proclaimed. Wonder Woman and Mr. Terrific turned to face Lex Luthor, not used to hearing the reverent tone in his voice regarding his archenemy. But, they figured the end of the world brought the best out of people. Even for someone as ruthless and selfish as Lex Luthor.  
  
“Besides,” Ruby added, walking up to them with a determined expression on her face, “we know it’ll work.”  
  
“How?” Mr. Terrific asked, still not entirely convinced. Rather than respond, Ruby simply turned to the side and stepped back, allowing a cloaked figure to step out from the shadows. Mr. Terrific’s eyes widened slightly at the man before him. There, with his cowl hanging off the back of his neck, showing his scarred face to the world, stood Bruce Wayne. Lex Luthor barely regarded his fellow billionaire with a passing glance before getting back to assembling the machine that would save their lives. None of them had time for sentimentality. He didn’t care that Bruce had been infected and turned into a zombie, only that the silver-eyed girl in their midst somehow managed to cure him.  
  
“Mr. Terrific, as much as I love working alone, and in all honestly I probably could do this by myself, I would appreciate some assistance. So, if you please?” Lex gestured towards the machine. Mr. Terrific composed himself then walked over, grabbing some tools and getting to work. Diana stepped back, allowing the two geniuses space to work, then walked over to Bruce. Despite him being with them almost the entire time, the man was quiet. Quieter than he usually was, and he had this haunted expression that was hard for Diana to describe.  
  
She knew why he had that expression, of course. Having the Anti-Life Equation run through your mind, even if only for a few minutes, could not have been a pleasant experience. The Amazon didn’t know what to say, and she didn’t know that anything she could say would even help. So instead, she simply took his hand into hers, hoping it would comfort him. At first, Bruce did nothing, then she felt his hand gently squeeze around hers.  
  
“…Thank you,” he whispered. Diana looked at her friend and nodded. Behind them, both teams RWBY and JNPR watched as the last two League founders shared a touching moment. It was heartwarming, yet none of them felt the strength to smile. The events of the past week were weighing heavily on their souls. When Mr. Terrific said that the Titans were the first to go, he wasn’t painting the full picture.  
  
The Titans weren’t alone in their home city when the virus erupted out of the mother box in Cyborg’s chest. RWBY and JNPR were there too, spared from its horrendous effects by Weiss insisting that they spend a day away from computers to enjoy the outside world. Instead, they had to put their friends down while Jump City ate itself alive.  
  
“You know,” Yang whispered, “I thought that what Brainiac did to Remnant was the worst thing that’s ever happened to me. Now I wish it was.”  
  
“Yeah,” Nora quietly replied, her normal jubilance completely gone. Ren was quieter than usual, the events of the past week getting to him more than he liked to admit. They looked each other in the eye, and she could see that Ren was scared. So was she, but her gentle touch to his shoulder seemed to reassure him.  
  
“Don’t worry, Ren,” Nora soothed her partner. “I won’t let it happen to you.”  
  
Ren stayed quiet, then placed his hands on hers and leaned into her. She hugged him as tight as she could, as though this would be the last time they ever would. For all she knew, it would be.  
  
Ruby, meanwhile, stood with Weiss next to a monitor, where they watched as mobs of zombies roamed the ruins of Metropolis. Their faces were still, trying their best to mask the pain they both felt. Metropolis was where they arrived on Earth, where they met Superman and the Justice League. They had spent countless hours prowling the streets, both as civilians and as heroes, and had come to find Metropolis to be a shining beacon of hope. Something they desperately needed after the destruction of their home.  
  
“I can’t believe it happened again,” Weiss muttered mournfully, tearing pooling in the corners of her eyes. Seeing this, Ruby frowned then placed her hand on Weiss’ shoulder.  
  
“Hey,” Ruby said, bringing Weiss’ attention to her. The young girl then pulled her partner into a hug, which Weiss quickly reciprocated. “Everything’s going to be okay. We can fix this.”  
  
Weiss didn’t respond, instead merely holding Ruby tighter as tears fell onto Ruby’s tattered cloak. The rest of their friends reacted the same way among each other, trying to catch a semblance of comfort. Any they found were fleeting, and all of their hopes rested on their last-ditch plan working.  
  
“Ruby,” Mr. Terrific called out from the inner chamber. “It’s time.”  
  
Ruby felt all of her friends’ attention fall upon her. She stepped back from Weiss and straightened herself, then turned towards the others. Their faces held a curious mixture of fear, trepidation, and oddly hope. The last bit of hope they had. Ruby knew it all rested on her, and she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t nervous. In fact, she was utterly terrified. There were so many ways their plan could go wrong, could go awry. But, as she locked eyes with Bruce, she knew that this was the only chance they had. If it could work on him, then just maybe it could be replicated.  
  
“Alright,” she finally replied, stepping towards Mr. Terrific and Lex Luthor. They were standing next a reclining chair with several tubes and wires connecting it to several advanced computers they looted from one of Luthor’s bunkers. On the headrest was a tight band with a pair of round goggles outfitted with sensors which were lifted above the headband’s rim, and similar constraints were found on the armrests and the bottom of the chair. Once again, Ruby felt nervousness creep up from within her, but she steeled herself and sat down on the chair. Almost immediately, Luthor and Mr. Terrific began to tighten the constraints around her head, wrists, and ankles, then Luthor turned to look her in the eye as he lowered the goggles.  
  
“Normally, this would be when someone would tell you empty platitudes such as ‘this will only sting a little,’ or ‘it will be over before you know it,’” he began as he inserted a needle into one of Ruby’s veins. “Those would be lies. What you, little girl, are about to experience will be the most agonizing pain in your entire life. Every cell in your body will feel as though it is on fire, and you  _will_  want to die.”  
  
Everyone stared at Luthor in a mixture of horror and disgust. Ruby closed her eyes then stared back up at him defiantly.  
  
“Oh, is that all?” she asked.  
  
Despite himself, Luthor chuckled. “If anything, you have my respect.” He then placed wooden sticks into Ruby’s mouth, which she bit into as hard as she could. Luthor then stepped back and turned towards Mr. Terrific, who handed him the centerpiece to their entire device. Their whole plan, really. Ruby, along with the rest of her team and team JNPR, recognized it immediately.  
  
It was hard, after all, to not recognize the very same Mother Box that teleported them to Earth. Mr. Terrific placed the Mother Box on a nearby desk, then Luthor walked over to it with two cables, one in each hand. He locked eyes with Ruby, who after a moment nodded once. He nodded back, then thrust the cables into opposite sides of the Mother Box. There was a spark as a connection was made.  
  
Then, all Ruby felt was pain as she screamed at the top of her lungs.  
  
~  
  
_One Hour Later  
_  
Ruby was still screaming, her cries muffled by the wooden planks in her mouth. Her throat felt constricted and dry, but still the screams came. Just as Luthor said, every cell in her body felt as though they were ready to explode.  
  
“Shut it off!” Yang demanded, marching up to Luthor with red eyes.  
  
“I can’t,” Luthor replied, checking his LexSuit for any deficiencies.  
  
“The hell you can’t!”  
  
“Not if this is going to work,” Luthor clarified, staring Yang down as Ruby screamed in agony. “Let me break it down for you. We are trying to brute-force calculate the entire Life Equation from the small  _fragment_  housed in your sister’s eyes, then amplify that signal to broadcast across the entire world. That takes time, and if we stop for even a second, we would have start from scratch all over again.”  
  
Yang growled and clenched her fists tightly. Her blood-red eyes bored into Lex’s green. He stared back at her impassively, confident that his assertion was correct. Yang wanted nothing more than to clobber him right then and there before ripping Ruby out of that machine. But, when she looked at her sister, she saw the corner of Ruby’s eye staring at her. A silent conversation ensued between them, and after a moment, Yang sighed and stomped away towards a wall, where she stopped to lean her back against it and keep watch over her sister.  
  
“Gods dammit…” she cursed, unfurling Ember Celica and chambering a shell. “How’s it looking out there?”  
  
“Defenses are holding,” Weiss revealed, staring into the monitor, “but not for long. Mr. Terrific, how close are we?”  
  
“Weiss, I can’t even begin to guess. I can only pray to God that we’re close,” Mr. Terrific answered, running his hands along a keyboard as his T-Spheres hovered around him. Lex, however, scoffed from his station.  
  
“Gods, or lack thereof, will have nothing to do with this. Either we win here because of our efforts, or we die because they were in vain,” Lex insisted. “You’d do well to remember that.”  
  
Mr. Terrific looked at Luthor from the side while continuing to work. Despite his condescending tone, Mr. Terrific couldn’t find it in himself to completely disagree. Granted, he never really was a believer of anything godly before, and the events of the past week hadn’t helped make him one. But, even if he knew it was pointless, he’d take all the help he could get.  
  
“Lois, how’s your bunker?” Diana asked over the radio, her sword and shield resting by the table.  
  
“ _We’re secure and ready to broadcast as soon as you’re ready,_ ” Lois revealed.  
  
“ _I’ll make sure nothing happens to her, father,_ ” Damian relayed, knowing that Bruce, although silent, was listening in. Bruce said nothing, but Diana could tell that he was grateful to hear Damian’s voice. To hear any of his children’s voices again. The Wonder Woman didn’t really know what was worse for the Batman to bear: the fact that he himself turned, or that he had to put down his own children who had turned before him. Only Damian had managed to escape, but that did little to ease the pain on Bruce’s soul.  
  
“Weiss, how’re we looking out there?” Blake asked, walking over to the former heiress. Weiss’ stark white hair was now torn and frayed, any semblance of its usual care thoroughly destroyed, and she was focused squarely on the security monitor before her. She didn’t even notice Blake standing right next to her, until the Faunus lightly shook her.  
  
“Huh?!” Weiss started, reaching for Myrtenaster while whipping around to face Blake. There were dark, heavy bags under her eyes, the effort of several days of little to no sleep, and her eyes were dilated in fright. When Weiss finally registered that it was Blake, not another zombie, she slowly calmed herself down and relaxed.  
  
“Sorry,” she said, feeling deep shame rise within her.  
  
“Don’t be,” Blake insisted, gingerly rubbing Weiss’ shoulder. In the background, both girls could hear Ruby’s muffled screams, and they were doing everything they could to block it out and stop themselves from stopping it. Both were proving to be quite arduous tasks.  
  
“Anyway,” Blake stated, “how’re we looking out there, Weiss?”  
  
Eager to keep her mind off things, Weiss shifted her attention back towards the monitor. “I’m seeing more of them out there. It won’t be long before they realize what’s going on in here. I can only hope the defenses last long enough for the calculation to finish.”  
  
“We will,” Blake declared, tightening her grip on Weiss’ shoulder in a comforting gesture. Weiss, tired and weary, flinched at first, then took her hand and clasped it over Blake’s. After everything that had befallen them, she needed all the comfort she could get.  
  
Jaune, meanwhile, couldn’t tear his gaze away from Ruby’s thrashing and screaming body. He didn’t want to watch his friend be in this amount of pain, but he also felt as though it was his duty to be there for her. Pyrrha was leaning against the wall next to him, joining her partner in an uncomfortable silence. Like him, she kept her gaze focused on Ruby, forcing herself to not look away no matter how much she wanted to.  
  
For her part, although Ruby could barely comprehend their presence, she was grateful they were there.  
  
~  
  
_One Hour Later_  
  
“Bulkhead integrity down to fifty-percent!” Weiss shouted as the incessant banging grew louder and louder. As she had feared, the hordes of undead outside their secure bunker finally noticed what they were doing. Whether they simply wanted to devour their flesh, spread the Anti-Life Equation, or possibly even stop what they were doing, Weiss didn’t know. Nor did she care, for that matter. Right now, all she cared about was keeping them out long enough to finish the calculation.  
  
“How much longer?!” Diana asked as she placed herself at the front of the survivors.  
  
“Just a few minutes!” Mr. Terrific answered, furiously typing away at several keyboards. He took a brief moment to glance at Ruby, who was no longer screaming but her body continued to thrash. Occasionally, flashes of silver light pulsated from beneath her goggles, telling him they were close.  
  
He heard more bangs against the bulkhead, which was now beginning to dent and buckle. A trickle of sweat beaded down his brow, and he typed faster.  
  
“Twenty percent!”  
  
The assembled survivors aimed their weapons towards the door, flicking their safeties off.  
  
“Ten percent!”  
  
Nora and Ren looked at each other, silently declaring the same thing. Jaune gulped nervously then raised his shield up, Pyrrha resting Miló on its top.  
  
“Five percent!”  
  
Weiss tore herself away from the monitor, pulling out Myrtenaster and rotating the revolving chamber to Firefly Gel. The banging was now overwhelming, each sound punctuated by a deep dent in the thick metal. From behind them, they heard Lex’s heavy footsteps as he marched over, now wearing his LexSuit. Batman was wearing a similar costume, bulky with armor plating and internalized servos. They looked at each other, then each nodded.  
  
Then, the door’s integrity finally failed, and it was violently hurled off its hinges. Almost immediately, Weiss activated a Glyph in the freshly made hole, combining it with the fuel and sending a column of flame into the mass of zombies. Flesh melted and boiled away, but still the undead bodies hurled themselves forward with reckless abandon. Gunshots and explosives filled the hallway, the survivors aiming for the heads. Limbs, guts, and gore flew out with each shot, but it still wasn’t enough.  
  
The first zombie, wearing the tattered remains of a businessman’s suit, was cleaved in half by Wonder Woman’s sword. The next, a female cheerleader, was similarly cut down by Jaune’s. Yet more came, clambering over the fallen bodies without care and forcing the survivors to step slowly back.  
  
“Almost there!” Mr. Terrific shouted out, sending his T-Spheres to assist his fellow survivors while continuing to calculate the final bits of the Life Equation. The sounds of battle filled the bunker, yet Mr. Terrific forced himself to remain focused on the task at hand.  
  
But, despite giving it their all, the zombies continued to advance. The doorway was practically barricaded by all the dead corpses falling on top of one another, yet the freshly fallen were clawed aside to make way for more. Batman threw Batarang after Batarang into the horde, an angry snarl marring his face as the thoughts of his fallen family filled him with rage. Once again, this cruel world took what was precious to him away, and he used that feeling of powerlessness to push him onward.  
  
“For Richard,” he declared as he threw a Batarang into the head of a zombified police officer. “For Jason. For Stephanie! For Barbara! For Cassandra! For Tim! For Katherine! FOR ALFRED!”  
  
Lex said nothing to the Batman as he fired Kryptonite-powered lasers into the horde. Even if the Batman’s anger was driving him forward, Lex couldn’t allow himself to do the same. Despite the world ending, Lex Luthor still had personal standards to abide by.  
  
Then a new corpse entered the fray, and Diana’s eyes widened as she recognized the tattered green costume of an old friend.  
  
“Ollie…” she muttered mournfully as the former Green Arrow charged towards them with a wordless, snarling roar. Before he could get too close, however, Pyrrha shot him right between his eyes, and his body fell like a lead brick. Still yet more zombies poured through, and to their regret, they began recognizing them.  
  
A zombified Black Canary cried towards them, the sonic waves aimed squarely at Jaune and his raised shield. His ears, even with the protection of his helmet, rang and threatened to burst, but he gritted his teeth and stabbed the former Leaguer in the heart. Dinah, seemingly unaffected, reached towards his head to bite into it, but Jaune had already ripped out his Crocea Mors and stabbed her again, this time in the mouth. Her blank eyes rolled into the back of her head, and when Jaune pulled his weapon free, she fell to the ground lifelessly.  
  
“I’m sorry,” he apologized, but forced himself to continue hacking away at the fresh zombies. Briefly, he saw Pyrrha cutting down a turned Hawkgirl, but soon the zombified Vixen lunged towards him and knocked the White Knight to the ground. With animalistic fury, Vixen began clawing at Jaune’s armor, scratching it deeply, but then Nora swung Magnhild into her chest. A loud crack followed as the hammer blow shattered Vixen’s ribcage, sending her flying into the opposite wall. Her spine snapped, and she fell to the ground in a heap. Yet, despite the damage she endured, the zombified Vixen snarled and dragged her body forward with her hands, only for Blake to cleanly shoot the back of her head and put the woman out of her misery.  
  
“Blake, watch out!” Yang shouted as she fired Ember Celica into yet another zombie. Blake turned just as Catwoman leaped towards her with her mouth opened wide, only for her semblance to take the blow for her. Out of danger for the moment, Blake shot Catwoman in the eye, blowing apart the undead thief’s head and killing her instantly. A pang of regret crossed her mind, but she shook it out. She’d have time to ruminate on that later. Hopefully.  
  
Ren fired Stormflower in bursts, splitting apart rotten heads before turning to the next. One zombie after another fell, and any who got too close were sliced apart by his weapon’s blades. His body winced, and even without checking his gauge, he knew his Aura was running low. Dangerously so. The Verdant Lotus didn’t know how much longer he could take, but as he ducked underneath zombie Starfire’s emerald blasts to shoot her in the head, he vowed to last as long as she could.  
  
“Terrific, status!” Lex shouted over the chaos, crushing a zombie’s head with one hand while firing a laser into another.  
  
“Just a few more minutes!” Mr. Terrific announced, a smile making its way onto his face. “I don’t believe it! We’re going to-!”  
  
As though the world answered his unspoken challenge, the roof of the bunker caved in. Time seemed to slow as Mr. Terrific turned in abject horror towards the fresh hole, where he saw Superman glaring at him through the smoke with burning red eyes. His flesh was rotten, and long, freshly made claw marks etched down his face.  
  
“Oh, shi-“  
  
Michael Holt never had time to finish his sentence as the former Man of Steel flew into him with great speed. He didn’t even feel his body crash against the concrete, killing him instantly.  
  
“Michael!” Wonder Woman shouted as she leaped towards Superman, engaging with the Kryptonian in a great brawl. Lex Luthor joined her, firing Kryptonite lasers into Superman’s back while the rest of the survivors were pushed further back. They desperately fought on, trying to keep their hope alive despite all odds.  
  
It wasn’t enough.  
  
Yang was the first to fall, Ember Celica clicking empty as the undead corpse of Aquaman fell to the ground. As she reloaded, zombies swarmed her, and her screams were drowned out by more zombies crashing through freshly made holes. Then Ren’s Aura finally failed, and he, too, fell against the endless hordes.  
  
Nora, screaming at the top of her lungs, fired grenade after grenade, only for an undead Killer Frost to strike her from behind. A thick coat of ice consumed her, and she could only frantically squirm in a desperate attempt at freedom as the zombies overwhelmed her, despite Jaune and Pyrrha’s attempts to hold them at bay.  
  
“NO!!!” Jaune shouted, hacking away as he attempted to save his friends, but Pyrrha forced him to retreat. She knew it was too late for them, now.  
  
Blake had already disappeared in the sea of bodies, and Weiss was hurling Glyph after Glyph with reckless abandon. Tears were streaming down her face, but then she felt a hand grip her shoulder. Weiss turned around, only for her eyes to widen as she recognized Blake’s face boring into her own. Only now it was vacant, filled only with needless hunger. The Ivory Mage tried to stop her former teammate, but the blow merely hit a shadow clone, allowing the real Blake Belladonna to pin Weiss to the ground and sink her teeth into Weiss’ neck.  
  
It was only Jaune, Pyrrha, Batman, Lex, and Diana now. The latter two were still tussling with Superman, but the rest were focused on the horde before them. Miló had long since run dry, and Pyrrha using her Semblance to turn Akoúo̱ into a flying buzzsaw while using Miló itself as a sword. Jaune was right beside her, but then he saw the Martian Manhunter phase up through the ground behind her. He barely had time to scream as J’onn J’onzz bit into her neck, breaking her Aura and transferring the Anti-Life virus to her. Enraged, Jaune threw an incendiary grenade into the former League Founder, causing the zombie to flail back as his skin melted. Pyrrha, meanwhile, steadily rose to her feet and looked at Jaune with fear-filled eyes.  
  
Jaune felt the hairs on the back of his head rise, and he turned to see the rest of his friends and teammates bearing down on him with open maws. They piled onto his shield, trying to break him down as his body was pushed back to the edge of Ruby’s chair. He turned his head to see Ruby, the light of her eyes glowing brighter and brighter by the second. Steeling his gaze, he yelled and threw his friends back.  
  
“Come on! You want her?! Then you’ll have to get through me!” Jaune declared as his zombified friends all charged towards him. He stabbed Ren in the heart, bashing him away with his shield as he sliced into Yang’s belly. She continued forward, allowing herself to be stabbed, but Jaune headbutted her away while bashing the edge of his shield into Nora’s head. Blake lunged towards him, only for Batman to tie her together with a heavy bolo while he threw Batarangs into the others’ heads.  
  
“Jaune, stand back!” Batman ordered, pulling out several Batarangs in each hand, held in-between his fingers. Jaune compiled, allowing Batman to throw the explosives onto their friends, sending them flying back with loud cracks. The White Knight then allowed himself to look down, where he saw Pyrrha had already begun to claw at her head in a desperate attempt to get the virus out.  
  
“Pyrrha…” he muttered, knowing what he had to do but not wanting to do it. As he heard his friends begin to rise back up, however, and the zombie horde grow louder outside, he turned his attention away for a moment. It was long enough for Pyrrha to fully turn, then jump onto Jaune’s back and sink her teeth into his neck. He screamed in agony, then fell to the ground thrashing.  
  
“Jaune!” Batman yelled out, trying to rush to his defense, only to see a broken Diana hurled against the wall. She didn’t get up, and with wide eyes, Batman turned to see Lex Luthor futilely trying to fend the undead Superman off. Faster than he could even blink, Batman saw Superman rip the LexSuit apart, pull Lex Luthor out from it, then rip the billionaire’s heart out.  
  
Once again, Batman was all alone. He forced himself to stand before Ruby’s thrashing body, holding a Batarang in hand. His last one. The horde bore down on him, and he knew that defiance was futile. But, if this was to be his last gasp, he’d go down fighting. Just like they did.  
  
Then, the world turned white.  
  
~  
  
Despite the pain, Ruby knew what was going on around her. She heard her friends fight, heard them fall one by one as they turned. She knew that only Batman was protecting her now, and great despair filled her.  
  
She’d failed them. She’d failed them all. Their hopes of salvation, of life, were resting on her, but she failed utterly. Now, all of her friends were dead, and here she was strapped to a stupid chair. Yet, despite how hopeless everything was, Ruby saw Batman stand before her protectively, even as the zombies rushed towards him. He was still protecting her, even after they all but failed.  
  
Something she couldn’t describe finally clicked in Ruby’s head.  
  
_Companionship plus Understanding plus Assurance plus Joy plus Altruism divided by Respect divided by Sympathy multiplied by Innocence multiplied by Dignity multiplied by Success multiplied by Acceptance. Y equals N where Y equals Despair and N = Caution, Love equals Truth, Death equals Rebirth, and Self equals Light Side.  
_  
Just as the first zombie reached Batman, Ruby’s eyes exploded as wings of white light engulfed the room. The Mother Box worked to amplify the signal, allowing the wings to embrace the world.  
  
~  
  
Batman had to shield his eyes from the blinding light, but even with his hands covering his face, he could still see it. The light permeated throughout his entire soul, and it felt…soothing. Calming, really. When it finally subsided, a strange silence filled the air.  
  
With wide eyes, Batman turned to face the rest of the room. To his shock, there were no longer undead zombies standing before him. Instead, he saw bodies lying on the ground, unmoving but shockingly alive. In a daze, he walked to the nearest one, seeing that it was Ren. Where there should have been a stab wound, there was nothing. Only torn clothes and a faint scar. Ren was shallowly breathing, but otherwise alive. So were the rest of Team JNPR, and Team RWBY.  
  
“Oooh,” Batman heard a faint groan, and in shock, he turned around to see Mr. Terrific pull himself off the cratered wall. He was about to fall to the ground, but Batman was on him almost instantly.  
  
“Michael. Michael, it’s okay,” Batman soothed him, lowering him gently to his knees. Mr. Terrific breathed in and out heavily, looking at the battle-damaged room around him. With wide eyes, he looked at the crater where his body was previously pancaked, and he couldn’t turn his gaze away from it.  
  
“I… I should be…” he muttered disbelievingly. They heard a gasp for breath and turned to see Lex Luthor moving his hands around his chest, as if he was both searching for wounds and checking to see if it was all real.  
  
“I don’t…believe it…” Lex muttered, sliding back against the wall as exhaustion overwhelmed him. A series of groans rose from the crowd before them, and they watched in amazement as the formerly undead zombies stirred themselves back to life. True life. From behind them, they heard Superman pick himself off the ground, breathing heavily as he looked around the room in a daze. As with the rest of the former undead, his face and body bore faint scars. Diana stood up as well, and one by one the members of the Justice League rose.  
  
“Okay,” Green Arrow spoke up, resting on one knee, “I don’t know if this is a dream, a nightmare, or possibly both. But, tell me this is real. Please?”  
  
“I… I think it is, Ollie,” Dinah replied, clutching her heart.  
  
“This headache certainly feels real,” Catwoman complained. One by one, Batman, Lex Luthor, and Mr. Terrific looked at each other. Despite seeing the results first hand, they still couldn’t believe it.  
  
Their plan, their last-ditch, Hail Mary of a plan, had worked. Not just worked, it worked better than they had expected. A fierce hope began to rise in Batman’s heart, and he almost pulled out his Batphone to call his family. To see if they were somehow, miraculously resurrected. But, the groans of a rejuvenated RWBYJNPR broke him from that course of action, and he immediately helped them to their feet.  
  
“Easy, easy,” he gently said, helping them up alongside Diana and a still-recovering Superman. For the Remnantian teens, their heads were dizzy, and their bodies were sore all over, but to their amazement, they were still alive. Yang couldn’t help but let a smile break out across her face as she took stock of the room, but then her attention zeroed in Ruby’s unmoving body.  
  
“Ruby!” she shouted, trying to rise to her feet but her legs gave way underneath her. The rest of the heroes shot into action, rushing as fast as their bodies would allow then moving past those limits as they surrounded her.  
  
~  
  
_One Month Later_  
  
Ruby felt the darkness around her slowly lift its veil. Her eyes blinked slowly, her vision going from blurry to clear after a few moments. She took stock of her surroundings and found herself to be in a concrete bunker. The ground beneath her was soft, and a quick glance revealed it to be a hospital bed. An IV was hooked into her arm, and the faint beeping of a heartbeat monitor was the only sound she heard.  
  
“Ruby,” a calm voice called out to her. Slowly, Ruby turned her head to see Superman sitting in a chair across from her, his attention never leaving her side. She took stock of the Man of Steel and saw that he was alive. His skin was its normal, healthy tone, and only faint scars told the tale of his infection.  
  
“Superman… You’re…” she croaked hoarsely, feeling tears well up the corners of her eyes. Superman calmly walked towards her, resting his hand on the edge of her bed.  
  
“I’m here,” he told her. “It’s okay, Ruby.”  
  
The dam broke, and Ruby couldn’t help but let the tears fall free. Superman remained quiet, allowing her the moment she needed. Gently, Superman reached down and took the young girl into a gentle hug, which Ruby tried to return, though her muscles were so stiff and weak that she could barely wrap her arms around him. He felt tears stain his costume, and at the same time felt his own tears fall down his cheeks and onto her hospital gown.  
  
“Thank you,” she said through the cries, but Superman shook his head and pulled away.  
  
“No, Ruby,” he replied, staring her in the eye. “Thank you. For saving us.”  
  
[~][~]


	32. Cold-Hearted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nora, Ren, Tim, and Stephanie investigate GothCorp, uncovering secrets for their investigation only to become the victims of one man's cold fury.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 23: Cold-Hearted **

[~][~]

 

Ren, Nora, Red Robin, and Spoiler quickly jumped across the Gotham rooftops, making their way towards the uptown financial district. Reaching high into the atmosphere were numerous skyscrapers, each emblazed with logos of various companies both Gotham bred and international. Ace Chemical Processing, a LexCorp branch office, S.T.A.R. Labs, and many more. Towering above all of them, however, was a two-pronged stone and glass building with a stylistic hole in its center. At the top of the prongs, the towers were connected, and a large, shielded, blue-and-grey lit ‘W’ sat emblazoned in its center. Wayne Enterprises, Gotham’s heart and soul. Fitting that it was seated squarely in the district’s center.

 

But as much as Ren and Nora liked looking at the building, they were more focused on a building just a few blocks away. In contrast to the Wayne Building’s more Gotham Style architecture, the GothCorp building was considerably more modern in appearance. Sleek glass and sharp lines covered the building from head to toe, with the green GothCorp logo stamped across the top. As with the buildings around it, the lights inside were shut off, preventing any of the heroes from seeing inside, but that wasn’t much of an issue for them as they instead peered through their masks’ thermal imaging.

 

“Hardly anyone inside,” Spoiler noted, watching a few scant security guards patrol the grounds.

 

“What did you expect? It’s nearly midnight,” Nora pointed out.

 

“She has a point,” Ren said. “Besides, didn’t you guys think that GothCorp was robbed?”

 

“Yes,” Red Robin replied, “but we can never be too careful. GothCorp has a history of less-than-legal proceedings, so forgive me if I’m suspicious of them.”

 

The Pink Lightning and Verdant Lotus considered Red Robin’s words for a minute, then nodded in agreement. They both, of course, knew what Red Robin was referring to, or at the very least the basics of it. GothCorp’s founder, Ferris Boyle, was a truly monstrous man who drove someone to villainy and was now locked way in Rikers Island. GothCorp barely recovered from the scandal and had been running a near nonstop PR campaign to restore its image ever since. Which is why Nora didn’t really accept Red Robin’s suspicions. If GothCorp knew everyone was watching them like a hawk, why would they knowingly engage in criminal activity? It didn’t make any sense.

 

“Any idea on how to get inside?” Spoiler asked as she moved to a higher perch, a gargoyle looking over the city street far below. Nora moved to suggest an option, but Red Robin beat her to the punch.

 

“GothCorp’s security’s been upgraded recently, and I’m not finding many holes,” Red Robin revealed, tapping away at a wrist-mounted holographic projection. “But I think there’s a hole in the roof.”

 

“The air ducts?” Spoiler asked, and Red Robin nodded. “Ugh, great. And I just got this suit washed, too.”

 

“I don’t think we need to do that,” Nora pointed out. “Why don’t we just—”

 

Suddenly, their suits picked up some commotion coming from a nearby dinner party. They looked down and saw, through their thermal optics, that an armed man with a thick backpack had just broken through the door of the establishment, holding two pistols connected to the pack through thin cables.

 

“ _Nobody move!_ ” he ordered, shoving what appeared to be a waiter to the ground. “ _Now, who among you wants some flavor?!_ ”

 

None of the heroes needed any further invitation as they jumped from their high-rises and fell towards the party’s open balcony. Once they got closer, Red Robin and Spoiler extended their capes into a glider, slowing their descent, while Ren spread his and arms and legs slightly. He pressed a button on his glove, and a wingsuit suddenly extended from his sides, connecting to his limbs and allowing him to control his fall. Nora, meanwhile, didn’t care much about slowing herself down. Instead, with a manic grin on her face, she spun in mid-air and fired a grappling hook towards a gargoyle hanging over the balcony. She rode it down like a swing, aiming straight for the balcony. It pulled her forward, and she rode the line as far as she could before she let go, allowing inertia to carry her the rest of the way. She landed with a roll on the balcony at the top of her arc, where her body’s momentum was as slow as it could possibly be. At the end of her roll, she pulled out Magnhild, the momentum of her landing carrying her through the open door and right into the middle of the party.

 

“Stop right there, criminal scum!” Nora announced her presence, internally gleeful that she had managed to beat her friends to the party. That glee turned into confusion as she finally saw the armed intruder with her own two-eyes and found that ‘armed’ was a gross over-exaggeration.

 

“What the…?” Nora mumbled, then the man saw her and smiled half-convincingly.

 

“Aha! A hero! Oh, how I relish this meeting!” the strangely dressed man turned to her, pointing a ketchup and mustard gun towards her. “Now you stay right there, else Gotham’s elite suffers the consequences of crossing the Condiment King!”

 

“The Condi- _what_?” Red Robin asked as he and the others finally entered the party, having listened in through their shared comms. When they finally saw the villain, dressed outlandishly in a bright-blue onesie with a encircled ‘C’ in the center of his chest, wearing a pickle-like mask that left his face exposed atop his head, and with several packs of ketchup and mustard that lined his arms, flabbergasted looks crossed all their faces. Spoiler then sighed and shook her head.

 

“Why does Gotham get all the crazies…” she muttered under her breath while the heroes holstered their weapons and raised their hands calmly.

 

“Now sir, put the ketchup and mustard down,” Ren gently said, slowly moving toward the ‘Condiment King’.

 

“Stay back, or see if you can cut the mustard!” the Condiment King ordered, pressing one of his guns to a hostage while aiming the other towards the heroes. “I know how to use this!”

 

“I’m sure you do,” Nora soothed, trying to play along with the clearly disturbed man, “but please, put it down before anyone gets hurt.”

 

Nora took another step, then the Condiment King yelped and stepped back, letting go of his hostage at the same time. Before Nora could react, he fired his condiment guns into her face, and Nora stopped dead in her tracks as she felt both ketchup and mustard hit her. No one made a sound as only the squirting of the ‘guns’ could be heard. Then, almost comically, the streams died down, and Nora blinked. She wiped away the mixture from her mask and looked at the completely covered side of her hand. Then, with a shrug, she licked it off and smacked her lips.

 

“Hmm, tasty,” she noted then calmly walked over to the Condiment King and removed the guns from the man’s hands. The Condiment King had tried to make a run for it, but Ren and Spoiler had already blocked his escape, making Nora’s ‘disarming’ easy. Now the wannabe-villain was shaking, clearly trying to put on false bravado, but Nora wasn’t buying it.

 

“What’s wrong?” she asked, stunning the man.

 

“No…nothing’s wrong!” the Condiment King insisted. “I, the Condiment King, am simply turning to a life of crime after society has wronged me!”

 

“Uh-huh,” Nora nodded, then placed a hand on his shoulder and pulling off his mask. She scanned his face and quickly found a match. “Michael, tell me the truth. What’s wrong?”

 

Michael Mayo looked at Nora for a few seconds, then felt the walls he had hastily erected come crashing down.

 

“Everything!” he sobbed out, letting tears fall freely. “I lost my job at the factory, my wife left me after having an affair, she took the kids and—!”

 

Nora then embraced Michael Mayo, who immediately returned the hug and sobbed into her shoulder.

 

“There, there,” she soothed, rubbing the back of his head and talking softly. “It’s okay, just let it out.”

 

Michael Mayo continued to sob, while the assembled party-goers and heroes looked on with sympathy. As the man continued to sob, ignoring the blots of condiments dripping from Nora’s face onto his shoulder, the heroes quietly led the man out of the building.

 

“I’m sorry for the intrusion,” Ren apologized to the party-goers as he closed the door behind them.

 

~

 

They waited with Michael at the bottom of the building for the police to arrive. After explaining the situation to an Officer Renee Montoya, they left the scene while she escorted Michael home. No charges would be filed, and the night continued on as planned.

 

“Here,” Ren offered Nora a towel, who eagerly took it and wiped away the last vestiges of condiments staining her face.

 

“Thanks, Renny,” Nora said, wiping the rest away then handing it back. “So, do you think next time we’ll face off against the Syrup Prince?”

 

Despite herself, Spoiler couldn’t help but chuckle. “Maybe.”

 

They all laughed, then recomposed themselves. They were making their way back to their previous perch before GothCorp, and once they all arrived the heroes quickly scanned the building for any entrances.

 

“We’re going to have to sneak in,” Red Robin declared, but Nora frowned.

 

“Do we?” she asked, but Spoiler shook her head.

 

“Yes, unfortunately,” Spoiler maintained, but Nora still wasn’t convinced.

 

“Why don’t we just go in and ask them?” Nora suggested, and the heroes shot her a look. “I mean, it would be really easy. Your way’s more fun, don’t get me wrong, but it seems a little, what’s the word?”

 

“Presumptive?” Ren offered, and Nora snapped her fingers towards her boyfriend.

 

“Yes, presumptive!”

 

The heroes thought it over for a minute, then Ren nodded.

 

“She has a point,” he stated, turning towards Red Robin and Spoiler while Nora flashed a smile. “There’s a high chance they truly were robbed, and if we asked, I’m sure they’d answer our questions.”

 

“I’m not so sure about that,” Red Robin countered, causing Nora to cross her arms and frown.  “In all my experience, simply asking doesn’t usually work out. They may _say_ ‘all you had to do was ask’, but they don’t really mean it.”

 

“Exactly,” Spoiler maintained. “As much as I don’t like the idea of going through a cramped, dusty air duct, they won’t just let us walk in.”

 

“Maybe,” Ren replied, his back turned towards an impatient Nora. She shook her head. As much as she liked Red Robin and Spoiler, they were both being far too stubborn in her eyes. At least Ren was sticking with her. As the trio continued to debate the proper course of action, Nora looked down at the street. A lone car was driving by, a white van emblazed with ice-cubes and a polar bear, and it continued far down and left her sight. Nora wasn’t focused on that, however.

 

“Ah, screw it,” she muttered under her breath. None of her friends heard her as she jumped off the building, aiming for the building’s entrance.

 

“I’m just saying, I don’t trust GothCorp,” Red Robin insisted.

 

“And I understand that, but I feel that in this instance we can give them the benefit of the doubt,” Ren calmly replied. Spoiler moved to support her boyfriend, then paused as she finally noticed something.

 

“Um, where’s Pink Lightning?” she asked. Ren and Red Robin shot her a look, and Ren turned around in slight alarm. True to the vigilante’s word, Nora was indeed gone, nowhere to be seen.

 

“I did think she was unnaturally quiet,” Red Robin quietly stated, internally berating himself for missing an obvious blind spot. Ren, meanwhile, sighed and pressed his fingers to his ear, already knowing where she had gone.

 

“Where are you?” he asked, and Nora immediately responded.

 

“ _Just a sec,_ ” Nora responded, followed by a light tapping as he knocked on the glass door. “ _Hello, sir? My name is Pink Lightning. We’re investigating why some of GothCorp’s technology was inside Scarecrow’s bombs. Would you mind if we… Uh huh. Uh huh. Oh, wonderful! Thank you!_ ”

 

“What happened?” Spoiler asked, feeling how giddy Nora was over the radio.

 

“ _He’s letting us in, and he’s calling the CEO over right now!_ ” Nora answered. She was met by silence, and she chuckled. “ _And you wanted to sneak in. Silly superheroes, you._ ”

 

Amused and unsurprised, Ren smiled and shook his head. “Only you, Nora. Only you,” he muttered to himself, and Nora grinned.

 

~

 

“Do-dododo…dodo…” Nora hummed to herself she kicked her legs back and forth atop the chair she sat upon. A warm grin was stretched across her face, pleased with herself as the rest of the heroes sat in chairs next to her along the wall.

 

“I can’t believe that actually worked,” Spoiler whispered. Nora’s grin grew wider, showing her pearly-white teeth to the world. Despite herself, Spoiler chuckled and shook her head, then looked at Ren. “Tell me, is she always like this?”

 

“Yes,” Ren answered plainly, then shot a smile towards Nora. “But it’s part of her charm.”

 

“Aw, Lotus,” Nora cooed, her grin growing wider and tilting her head to the side. Ren smiled faintly back, then the group fell back into a comfortable silence. The minutes flew by, and nothing of note occurred. As much as it pained her to admit it, Spoiler was growing rather bored, but at the same time, she hoped she _remained_ bored. When things got interesting is when things went wrong.

 

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, a black sedan pulled in front of the GothCorp building. It parked, and out stepped a tall man with short brown hair dressed in a brown suit, white undershirt, and a dark red tie. He hastily pressed away the wrinkles in his suit, trying to make himself look presentable, then strode into the building straight towards them.

 

“Heroes. I apologize for the wait. Have to admit, didn’t expect a call from the office at this hour,” he greeted them as he entered the building. Ren, Nora, Red Robin, and Spoiler stood up to meet him, Nora wearing a happy look while Ren remained neutral. Despite GothCorp’s apparent cooperation, however, Red Robin and Spoiler couldn’t help but give a small frown.

 

“It’s no problem,” Red Robin said. “We apologize for bothering you on such short notice in the middle of the night, and appreciate you coming to speak with us personally.”

 

“I’d imagine so. Daniel Powers, CEO of GothCorp, at your service.” Daniel Powers extended his hand in an offering, but only Nora felt inclined to shake it. He frowned, then sighed in acknowledgment. “This isn’t a courtesy call, is it?”

 

“I’m afraid not,” Spoiler answered, crossing her arms while Red Robin projected an image of a small, circular device inside of a tube. “This is a highly advanced aerosolizing chamber developed by GothCorp’s Research and Development teams, not yet available on the market due to pending government review.”

 

“I know what it is,” Powers admitted with a sigh. “One of our more promising developments, if I say so myself.”

 

“Promising enough to be used in a fear gas bomb,” Ren pointed out. A heavy silence fell over the group as they all stared at the middle-aged CEO, only broken by one final sigh.

 

“Yes. That was…unfortunate,” Powers stated, rubbing the back of his head. “But I assure you, GothCorp had nothing to do that tragedy.”

 

“Still, if you don’t mind, we’d like to take a look around to see for ourselves,” Spoiler said, and to her slight surprise, Mr. Powers nodded in agreement.

 

“Of course. In fact, I’ll show you around myself,” Mr. Powers offered. Red Robin raised his eyebrow towards the CEO in disbelief and crossed his arms.

 

“You’re being awfully cooperative,” Red Robin pointed out as Mr. Powers led them to a nearby elevator, opening it up with a keycard.

 

“It’s why I was brought on board,” Mr. Powers explained. “After what GothCorp’s…illustrious founder did all those years ago, the Board felt the need for a different approach. We pride ourselves in our transparency to the public, the media, and the authorities.”

 

“Hmm,” Red Robin huffed. Being an adopted son of Bruce Wayne, Tim Drake was more than knowledgeable about corporate speak. ‘Being open to everyone’ in this scenario meant ‘we have been in a non-stop PR campaign for the past few years to keep our company afloat after our founder got arrested for making a supervillain.’ Standard corporate talk, in Tim’s opinion. Still, he was being cooperative, so Red Robin could put aside his suspicion. For now, at least.

 

“Please feel free to inspect anything you see fit,” Powers offered as the elevator ascended to the highest floors of the building, “for as long as you desire.”

 

“We will. Thank you, Mr. Powers,” Spoiler said, giving a sharp look to the back of his head. Despite not seeing her glare, Powers still felt it and sighed once again.

 

“I know you suspect me and my company. Honestly, I’m not all that surprised,” Powers admitted, clenching his fist while the heroes looked on in slight astonishment. “What Ferris did to that man was, frankly, unforgivable, and I’ve been trying to right this company ever since.”

 

“Then how did GothCorp technology get into Scarecrow’s hands?” Red Robin asked as the car doors opened. With a frown on his face, Daniel Powers beckoned them to enter. A pained look crossed his face, as though what he was about to say physically hurt him, but he soldiered through and looked them all in the eye.

 

“About a week before Scarecrow’s attack,” he began, leading them towards his office, “GothCorp’s R&D building was broken into. Several pieces of experimental technology were stolen, including the aerosolizing chambers utilized in the fear bombs.”

 

The heroes all shared a look. Theft had always been a possibility, they had even discussed it before leaving for GothCorp, but Red Robin and Spoiler still weren’t convinced Powers was telling the truth. Ren was skeptical, but at the same time willing to give him the benefit, whereas Nora gave every appearance of taking the man at his word. Their friendliest member certainly hoped that everything would prove to be as straightforward as he claimed, but behind her guileless smile she was as alert for anything suspicious as the others. Powers, for his part, seemed to take the two veterans’ suspicion in stride, then flashed his keycard over a scanner.

 

“You’ll find everything you need to conduct your investigation in this and the adjacent rooms. Video files, financial transactions, emails, and more. Please feel free to use me as a resource as much as you like.”

 

Once more, the heroes shared a look. Then, at once, they looked towards the CEO and nodded.

 

“Thank you for your cooperation, Mr. Powers,” Nora said with a warm smile as she and her friends got to work. Powers smiled back and nodded.

 

“You’re welcome, miss. Happy to help.”

 

~

 

She was here. He found her. He finally found her.

 

It had taken over a month to do so, through countless struggles, dead ends, and dead men, but he finally found her. How ironic, that he would find his wife in the very place where it all began. Where he became a monster trapped in a mobile prison of his own design.

 

Of course, another part of him felt it wasn’t ironic at all, merely an inevitability. Perhaps it was fate that brought him and his wife back to this place? As the thought entered his mind, it raced with possibilities. Had fate decreed that his wife be taken from him? Had fate decided to turn him into a cold, heartless monster unable to feel even the sun’s warmth across his skin? If so, then he despised fate, for it had taken everything from him.

 

Which is why he was doing this. Only he could save his beloved wife from what ailed her. Anyone else would get it wrong or would have given up by now. Not him. Not now, not ever. This mantra echoed in his mind as he refilled his suit and connected a fuel tank to his weapon. Icy breath froze against the glass window of his helmet while a display showed him the internal workings of GothCorp. The temperature inside his suit was well below zero degrees Celsius, which only served to remind him of what he had become. But at the same time, it didn’t concern him. If he had to be a monster to save the one he loved most, he was okay with that.

 

He’d kill for that.

 

~

 

“Hoo boy, GothCorp’s in trouble,” Spoiler noted as she rummaged through several files of financial data. After hours of searching, what she found wasn’t painting a pretty picture. It was one of dire financial struggles, exorbitant R-and-D costs on unfruitful or unsuccessful product lines, and all the other signs of a dying company struggling to save itself. All of this wasn’t new, by any means. After all, GothCorp was currently a publicly-traded company, and this information was freely available to investors.

 

“Yes, sadly,” Daniel Powers reluctantly admitted. “It’s taken everything I have just to keep GothCorp afloat, not to mention avoiding layoffs. Although, at the way the company’s going, I soon may have no choice in the matter.”

 

Red Robin frowned as he pored over emails, this time in sympathy. It appeared that, unlike GothCorp founder Ferris Boyle, Daniel Powers was genuinely concerned about the people who worked under him and wanted to do a good job. Maybe he’d been too quick to assume the worst about the man? But, at the same time, years upon years of experience was screaming at him that the CEO of GothCorp was not to be trusted, as much as he wanted to believe otherwise.

 

Nora and Ren, meanwhile, analyzed the files on GothCorp’s internal networks using one of Oracle’s algorithm thumb drives. It scanned software for any files of note, highlighting receipts and scanned documents for further analysis. As Nora suspected, what she was finding was proof that GothCorp was truly innocent in this matter. Everything the company was doing regarding the aerosolizing chambers was perfectly legal and by the book. The only transactions made regarding them were preorders from other companies, pending government approval of the patent. The chamber itself was meant to increase the efficiency of fuel consumption in engines with no obvious signs of intended weaponization.

 

“Lightning, look at this,” Ren said as he pulled up a video file, marked a week before Scarecrow’s attack. Without saying a word, Nora pulled her chair closer and leaned closer to the screen, allowing Ren to play the video. At first, it played at normal speed, showing researchers inside GothCorp’s lab going about their normal day-to-day routine. Ren then sped it up considerably, fast-forwarding to the middle of the night when no one was inside save for a lone security guard making his rounds. That changed suddenly as the lights shut off for barely thirty seconds, the only light coming from the guard’s flashlight. Almost as soon as it disappeared, however, the lights came back on, much to the surprise of the guard. His surprise turned into alarm, however, as he noticed the aerosolizing chamber prototype was now missing.

 

“I didn’t see anything,” Nora admitted, and Ren nodded. He wasn’t surprised she didn’t see anything. Even with Oracle’s algorithm, it took him a few tries to see anything of note, too. Ren reversed the video to right before the blackout, then pointed to the corner of the screen.

 

“Right there,” he declared. “See her?”

 

Nora squinted her eyes and leaned closer. It was a struggle to make it out, but soon her eyes began to pick up a faint outline of a dark-clad figure standing behind a window. She waved Red Robin and Spoiler over, who immediately dropped what they were doing and came to investigate. Curious, Daniel Powers joined as well, and Ren moved the file to a large flat screen embedded into the wall before them. Using a laser pointer taken from a nearby desk, Ren highlighted the individual in question, and soon everyone’s attention was focused on her.

 

“We’ve combed through this file for a month, how did we not see this?” Powers muttered in disbelief.

 

“I don’t know about that, but to me,” Nora stated, crossing her arms, “that looks like a ninja. Look, there’s even a sword on her back.”

 

True to Nora’s word, an even fainter outline of a sword’s hilt was visible on the apparent ninja’s back. At once, a thought crossed all of their minds, and both Red Robin and Spoiler clenched their fists.

 

“Of course,” Red Robin growled while Spoiler shook her head.

 

“Can’t say I’m surprised. He was one of the suspects,” she continued, and Daniel Powers looked at Spoiler in slight confusion.

 

“Who?” he asked, and Ren looked at him.

 

“We would need further evidence, but right now, the signs are pointing towards the League of Shadows being the ones who stole the aerosolizing chambers from your company, Mr. Powers,” Ren revealed. Slowly, Powers’ eyes widened, first in realization then in horror.

 

“My God…” he muttered, and Red Robin frowned.

 

“Indeed. In fact, had you turned over this video to the authorities before this, we could have caught onto R’as’ trail that much sooner. So, I have to ask, why did you wait?”

 

“Yes, actually,” Spoiler added, crossing her arms. “I didn’t see a single police report from GothCorp regarding the break-in, nor an insurance claim. Those aerosolizing chambers must have cost a lot of money.”

 

“They did,” Powers admitted with a frown, mostly directed towards himself. “You have to understand my position.”

 

“My understanding is that you withheld evidence regarding an investigation,” Red Robin stated. In contrast to his earlier demeanor, Powers flashed an angry snarl.

 

“I know!” he shouted, but before the heroes could do anything else, the CEO paused himself and breathed in and out deeply. Once he calmed down, he regarded them again. “I know it looks bad, but you have to understand. You saw how precarious GothCorp is at the moment. Even though it’s been years since the scandal broke, GothCorp has never recovered. News getting out about GothCorp’s experimental products being robbed, only for that technology to later be used in a terrorist attack, would have destroyed us.”

 

“So, you covered it up?” Spoiler accused with a small frown. A moment of silence passed, then Powers reluctantly nodded.

 

“…Yes, I covered up a crime committed against us out of fear we would receive the backlash. Fears that, I’m afraid, were well-founded.”

 

The heroes looked at Powers, the two sides staring the other down. On the one hand, they could see Powers’ situation. Everything he said was true regarding GothCorp’s situation, providing sufficient motivation to do what he did. But he still broke the law, covered up a crime and prevented a proper investigation to be conducted. Nora frowned, not liking the complexity inherent in this situation. She liked it better when the lines between good and evil were much starker.

 

“You’re going to report me to the police, aren’t you?” Powers finally asked. After a moment, the heroes nodded.

 

“Yes, we are. Regardless of the fact that you are the victim of a crime, you still engaged in a cover-up,” Ren declared. The CEO sighed and sat down, rubbing his forehead together. Feeling sympathy, Ren continued, “I’m sorry, sir.”

 

“Don’t be. It’s my own damn fault. Add this to the long list of mistakes I’ve made,” Powers replied, his head facing the floor. Taking one final look at the man, the heroes turned to leave. When they made it to the elevator, however, Powers called out to them one last time.

 

“Just…promise me that you’ll stop him,” he begged, and for the first time since he met the man, Red Robin smiled at him.

 

“We will, Mr. Powers. I promise you that,” Red Robin declared. Powers made a small nod then went back to sulking, while a saddened Nora pressed the call button for the elevator.

 

“Do you have copies of everything?” Spoiler asked, and Ren nodded while pulling out a flash drive.

 

“Yes,” Ren answered. “Uploading to Oracle now.”

 

“Do it,” Red Robin ordered, shivering slightly. Had the air conditioning suddenly turned on? It seemed much colder now. Ren, meanwhile, tried to upload the evidence towards Oracle, but to his growing alarm, he was finding himself unable to do so. He tried again, only to receive the same result.

 

“I’m not getting a signal,” Ren declared, causing the rest of the heroes and Powers to shoot their attentions towards him.

 

“What?” Nora asked, quickly bringing up her own comms. To her alarm, she got nothing. “I’m not getting a signal, either.”

 

“Same,” Spoiler joined the chorus, then shot Powers a look. He was now standing up, cell phone in hand and pressing as many buttons as he could, but the look on his face told her everything she needed to know.

 

“What’s going on?” Powers asked, growing more alarmed by the second. Red Robin shivered again, this time seeing the faint outline of his breath before his face. In fact, he could see everyone’s breath now. Suddenly, it all seemed to fall into place, and Red Robin shot towards the nearest computer.

 

“Is this intranet enabled?” he demanded to know, logging himself back on as the rest of the group assembled around him.

 

“Uh, yes,” Powers answered. Red Robin silently acknowledged him, pulling up GothCorp’s current security feeds and bringing it to the front screen.

 

“Oh God…” Powers paled, as did Red Robin, Spoiler, Pink Lightning and Verdant Lotus. There, covering every single exit in and out of the building, were walls of ice several feet thick. Around them were completely frozen security guards, caught entirely by surprise. Only a few were able to even begin pulling out their weapons.

 

“Where is he?” Red Robin muttered to himself as he cycled through feed after feed.

 

“Who?” Ren asked, pulling out Stormflower while Nora unfurled Magnhild. Finally, Red Robin centered on a larger gathering of security officers, who had barricaded a door with desks and were desperately trying to call for back up. But the jamming of their comms affected the guards as well, and there was nothing they could do but watch in horror as the barricaded door began to ice over, before shattering. Thick icy mist flowed from the threshold as every single security guard in the room aimed their weapons shakily towards the large, menacing figure advancing through it. Red eyes glowed from behind a thick glass helmet and metal exoskeleton. Blue neon lines of cryogenic fluid crossed the suit, with a large tube connected to the back of a large gun.

 

“ _Alright, everyone,_ ” Mr. Freeze declared in a cold deadpan, the monotone echo of his voice from his helmet received through the security feed as he fully entered the room, bringing his gun forward as the guards were paralyzed by fear. “ _Chill_.”

 

Before most could react or even fire their weapon, Mr. Freeze fired his cryo-gun, encasing the terrified guards in ice. A few managed to get some shots off, but the bullets ricocheted off his cryo-suit harmlessly, and a dispassionate Mr. Freeze froze the offenders without a second glance. Within a few seconds, only a single guard remained, frozen up to his waist and shaking from both hypothermia and fear.

 

“ _Please, have mercy,_ ” he begged, but instead Mr. Freeze aimed his gun at him.

 

“ _I’m afraid my condition has left me numb to your pleas of mercy,_ ” he declared, then froze the top half of the man solid. Without a single shift in his expression, Mr. Freeze continued through the room and onto the next, freezing the door behind him.

 

A heavy silence fell over the assembled heroes, then at once, they all reacted.

 

“Stay here and lock the door,” Red Robin declared as he and the heroes sprinted towards the stairwell. Powers didn’t need to be told twice as he sprinted towards his office, locking it behind him in a futile yet somewhat comforting gesture. Soon, he was left all alone as the heroes raced towards the enemy, as the icy grip of terror tightened around him.

 

~

 

Victor Fries, more commonly known as Mr. Freeze. A notorious supervillain who held the distinction of being the first superpowered individual Batman ever had the misfortune of coming to conflict with. Over the years, he had been responsible for dozens of deaths, the theft of several hundreds of thousands of dollars, and countless injuries. Now he was rampaging inside GothCorp, and he needed to be stopped.

 

The only question on Nora’s, Ren’s, Red Robin’s and Spoiler’s minds, however, was ‘why is he here?’

 

“This doesn’t make any sense,” Spoiler said as they raced down the stairwell. “Why would Victor attack GothCorp?”

 

“No idea,” Red Robin answered, vaulting over a railing to descend faster. “We’ll figure that out later.”

 

“Do you think Powers has something to do with it?”

 

“Knowing Victor? Definitely,” Red Robin snarled and clenched his fists. He knew that something was off about Powers, and Victor Fries attacking GothCorp was proof of that. There was only one thing that motivated Victor to do what he did.

 

“I thought Victor was in the Wayne Rehabilitation Program?” Ren asked, having read Fries’ file during his off-time. By all accounts, Victor was a successful participant, working out of a specialized lab on the other side of Gotham.

 

“He is,” Spoiler replied. “Which only makes it more confusing. We’d been in contact with Victor weekly, and there was no indication of anything going wrong on his end.”

 

Nora pursed her lips and frowned. She didn’t like this, not one bit. They were going into battle completely in the dark, unable to contact the outside world for reinforcements despite all attempts to do so. Not only that, they didn’t even know where Mr. Freeze was. The man was destroying every security camera he came across, leaving them blind to his movements. But what was worst of all was just how cold it was getting. With each floor they passed, it was like steeping deeper into a freezer.

 

They passed another floor, and almost immediately they noticed a distinct film of ice covering the floor. Faint mist floated in the air, and their breaths condensed before their faces.

 

“Oh my God…” Spoiler muttered as they noticed, at the far end of a corridor, the body of a security guard. He was standing upright, his gun facing forward and his finger on the trigger. The gun’s barrel was sliding back from being fired, and a terrified expression was plastered across his face. Most of all, he was completely encased in ice from head to toe. Ren quickly scanned his body for any vital signatures but closed his eyes and sighed remorsefully.

 

“He’s gone,” he revealed, looking down and to the side.

 

“Dammit, Victor. What have you done?” Red Robin asked himself under his breath. He steeled himself, then looked at the rest of his comrades. “Victor’s been here recently. There has to be trail, a pattern to his movements. We figure that out, we find him.”

 

“On it,” Nora, Spoiler, and Ren replied in unison, then began getting to work. Using their masks’ detective mode, they began to search for any evidence regarding Mr. Freeze’s movements. Quickly, they found a trail, which led them to a stairwell on the opposite side of the floor, heading upwards. Red Robin cursed to himself. Had they just gone down another flight of stairs, they could have run into him and stopped this all at once. But, at the same time, perhaps that would have been for the worse? After all, randomly running into a supervillain unprepared was a recipe for disaster.

 

They raced to the stairwell, where they found the steps covered in ice so thoroughly it had become a slide. This didn’t daunt them in the slightest, as they all simply pulled out their grappling hooks and zipped upwards. Stairs raced them by, the ice growing thicker and thicker with each passing floor until the ice abruptly stopped.

 

“Wait, go back,” Nora called out, halting her ascent and going back down to the floor below. As Nora noticed, the ice had indeed stopped after this floor, and here the ice was as thick as she had ever seen. In some places, nearly a foot thick. Cautiously, the heroes released their hooks and landed on the ice-covered floor, pulling out their weapons as they walked forward. None of them said a word, their eyes peeled for any movement.

 

Ice crunched underfoot as they cautiously stepped further into the frozen floor. Their suit’s insulation protected them from the cold, but even then, they couldn’t help but shiver on occasion. Part of Nora wondered if that was due to some shared nervousness, but just as quickly as it appeared, she brushed it aside. She couldn’t afford to let thoughts like those cloud her judgement, not when people’s lives were on the line.

 

Suddenly, Red Robin stopped and thrust up a closed fist. Immediately Nora, Ren, and Spoiler halted, tensing for whatever caught Tim’s attention. He turned to face them, the irises of his mask glowing white, as he pointed two fingers into an adjacent room. The others nodded silently then slowly maneuvered themselves along the wall. They activated their mask’s optics to see though the wall as well, just to confirm what Red Robin was seeing. To their shock, what they saw was nothing as a thick cloud of cold air blanketed everything inside the room, preventing them from even seeing the furniture. A quick scan into the other rooms showed that none had this property, telling them why Red Robin was so interested in this room.

 

Nora held out Magnhild and raised it up, preparing to break down the wall and create an opening. She waited for Red Robin’s permission, and once he, Ren, and Spoiler were ready, he nodded. Nora nodded back and threw Magnhild back, but just as she began to swing forward, her senses screamed. Ren’s did as well, and before either Red Robin or Spoiler could react, Ren and Nora each grabbed one and dived out of the way as a torrent of ice was shot towards them from the hallway, striking the wall where they just were. The entire flank was immediately frozen as large crystals of ice formed on its surface, the immediate impact area forming a large icicle that jetted out into the hallway. Now on high alert, the heroes sharply turned towards the shot’s source. There, hanging in the mist, they saw the black silhouette of a man glaring at them through glowing red goggles.

 

“Mr. Freeze,” Red Robin growled as Mr. Freeze stepped out from the mist, his cryo-gun pointed towards them menacingly.

 

“Children,” he greeted them emotionlessly. “That was a warning shot. I have no quarrel with you this evening, so I advise you leave GothCorp immediately.”

 

“You know we can’t do that, Victor,” Spoiler said, pulling out a shuriken and clenching her fist. “Please, stop this and come quietly. Before anyone else gets hurt.”

 

Mr. Freeze said nothing at first, and part of Nora wanted to believe that just maybe the cryologist was heeding Spoiler’s words. Instead, without a single emotion showing on his face, Mr. Freeze pulled the trigger. Expecting the action, the heroes dived to the side in pairs, Ren with Red Robin and Spoiler with Nora. A tilted spike of ice struck the floor while a thick covering encased the area around it, followed by more spikes as Mr. Freeze fired blast after blast towards the heroes. Each one they dodged, but to their alarm they noticed that more of the floor was being consumed by ice.

 

“Gagh!” Nora shrieked in surprise as she landed wrong and slipped, falling onto her rear. Aiming to take advantage of this blunder, Mr. Freeze aimed his cryo-gun towards her, but a trio of electrified shurikens thrown by Red Robin threw off his aim. A torrent of ice struck the wall, forming a spike of ice that narrowly missed Nora’s head. With wide eyes, she got to her feet and dived away as a follow-up shot struck where she just was, only now it was a stream that followed her as she slid away.

 

With cold precision, Mr. Freeze continued to track Nora until he felt his suit ping as several nine-millimeter rounds struck. Ceasing his attack, he turned to the source, only to have a leaping Ren kick him in the faceplate. Mr. Freeze grunted and stumbled back, the ice being crushed underfoot. Refusing to let up, Ren followed up his surprise attack with several kicks, punches and slashes, aiming for the tubes of coolant that crisscrossed the cryo-suit.

 

“I can’t let you do that,” Mr. Freeze declared as Ren swiped one of Stormflower’s bayonets at a coolant tube. Using his free hand, Mr. Freeze grabbed Ren’s wrist and stopped it entirely, much to Ren’s surprise. Ren tried to break free, but a mechanical whine sounded as Mr. Freeze’s grip tightened. Then Mr. Freeze shot his head down, striking Ren’s and stunning him. Ren flinched for just a second on reflex, which Mr. Freeze exploited to raise his foot and kick into Ren’s chest. The Verdant Lotus felt the air leave his lungs as he was hurtled back, striking the wall with enough force to crack it.

 

“…ow,” he grunted, but almost immediately felt his senses scream at him to move. Knowing he didn’t have time to rise to his feet, Ren kicked the wall behind him, the icy surface allowing him to slide to safety just as Mr. Freeze fired at him. As he slid, Ren fired both pistols at Mr. Freeze, forcing the supervillain to hastily raise his arms to protect his face. One of the bullets managed to puncture a coolant tube, causing Mr. Freeze’s attention to shoot down to it. He frowned, the first show of emotion Nora noticed from the cold man as he clamped the breach with his free hand, and he looked at the rest of the heroes disdainfully.

 

“Give it up, Victor!” Spoiler demanded as she rushed towards him, pulling and expanding her bo staff with a twirl. Mr. Freeze refused to deign her with an answer, instead raising the cryo-gun towards her to fire. Using her bo staff, Stephanie pole vaulted over the shot, allowing her to kick Mr. Freeze twice before launching herself off of him. From the side, Red Robin seized his chance to fire his grappling gun into Freeze’s back, pulling himself forward to kick the villain forward while planting a small electrical charge in his stead. Arcs of electricity coursed through his suit, yet his suit’s insulation protected him from its effects.

 

It didn’t let him do anything to stop Nora’s charge, however, as she rushed him with Magnhild held high. He barely got a shot off before Nora slammed her weapon into his side, the metal screeching from the impact as he was sent flying into and through a nearby wall. Rubble collapsed around him, and with heavy breaths the heroes waited for the supervillain to make his next move.

 

“Oh, come on,” Nora complained as Mr. Freeze picked himself off the ground, the internal mechanics of the powered cryo suit squealing for all to hear. Where Magnhild struck was a noticeable dent, coolant leaking down its side, but Mr. Freeze didn’t seem to care. The more Nora thought about it, the more she noticed that Mr. Freeze just didn’t seem to care much about anything.

 

“Victor, please,” Ren called out, trying to talk sense into the man. “Just stand down.”

 

Once again, Mr. Freeze said nothing, but none of the heroes thought he was considering their words. The man was far too stubborn and relentless for that, and so they braced themselves for further confrontation. So, when Mr. Freeze fired at them yet again, they easily dodged the attack and rolled to their feet, preparing to retaliate.

 

But, to their surprise, Mr. Freeze didn’t step into the room. Instead, he appeared to be smirking. For a moment, none of them knew why, then at once a large crack sounded from the middle of the room. The floor was now completely covered in a thick layer of ice, the added weight too much for the room’s support to bear. The crack spread, and the heroes drew out grappling hooks to try and catch themselves only for Mr. Freeze to freeze the tools solid with precise shots from his cryo-gun. Undeterred, the heroes rushed towards the supervillain, only for the ice to fully crack, and the floor to collapse out from under them. They screamed in surprise as gravity quickly reasserted itself, sending them falling down the floor where an avalanche of ice buried them.

 

From above, Mr. Freeze dispassionately watched as the ice settled. He waited for any sign of movement, then noticed that one section of the ice was violently shaking. Soon after, he saw the ice surrounding Nora explode as pink electricity coursed through her body. In the corner of her HUD, she saw a battery icon telling her that her suit’s charge was quickly being drained, and with a wordless yell, Nora leaped towards the supervillain with her hammer held high. Mr. Freeze was expecting this however, and already had his cryo-gun trained on her. She was helpless to stop the torrent of ice striking her dead-center, pinning her from head to toe to the wall behind her. Only her face was exposed, but that didn’t do her much good as Mr. Freeze silently turned and walked away, freezing the entrance to the stairwell behind him.

 

‘ _All according to plan,_ ’ he thought, with the lone exception of a few minor details. The coolant leak would have to be fixed, of course, but it was a minor detail. Most of the coolant tubes were inside his suit, with the external ones meant to be obvious targets similar to the sigil on Batman’s suit. The loss to his structural integrity, displayed onto his suit’s HUD, was within acceptable boundaries for fighting off against two non-powered and two-powered individuals.

 

At the same time, Mr. Freeze knew the heroes weren’t killed by his little trick, just as he knew trying to fight them off on his own was foolish. So, he quickened his pace, eventually finding himself before the office of Daniel Powers. With a noticeable scowl, he froze the door solid, shattering it with a well-aimed punch.

 

“Mr. Powers, I believe we have an _appointment,_ ” he announced as he strode into the room, searching for the CEO that he knew was cowering in here. With a wordless yell, the CEO in question shot up from behind his desk, firing a sawed-off double-barrel shotgun at the invader. The buckshot bounced off the cryo-suit harmlessly, and a suddenly infuriated Mr. Freeze stomped towards a now panicking Powers.

 

“Now, Victor,” Powers began, his flesh paling as the weapon numbly dropped from his hands. “Let’s talk this out, okay? We can—”

 

Mr. Freeze cut him off by grabbing the edge of the desk and hurling it to the side, the wood splintering against the wall. Before the CEO could even respond, Mr. Freeze grabbed hold of him by the neck and brought him up to his face.

 

“I’m only going to ask you this _once_ ,” Mr. Freeze growled into the terrified face of Daniel Powers. “Where? Is? _Nora?_ ”

 

~

 

Nora Valkyrie had already begun struggling to free herself when Mr. Freeze left them, but the cold ice encasing her made movement difficult. Her head immobilized, she moved her eyes around the room to try and find her friends, but she saw only ice. Nora tried to frown, but instead could only chatter her teeth. Her efforts to free herself redoubled, and cracks began to appear in her icy prison. First she was able to free her hand, the ice around it shattering into thousands of tiny pieces. She felt feeling slowly return to the appendage, then once she had enough, gently pressed a button on her glove. She felt electricity shock her, allowing her Semblance to kick in once again and give her the strength she needed to break the ice around her completely.

 

“Gagh! Gods, that’s cold!” she shouted, rubbing her arms frantically while falling to her knees. Once again, she looked around the room, first finding Magnhild then trying to discern where her teammates had fallen. She wondered just how exactly this could’ve happened, but then sighed in realization. In hindsight, it was obvious what Mr. Freeze was doing. Metal, which made up the framework of this entire building, didn’t like sudden change in temperatures. Mr. Freeze shooting his cryo-gun all over the place couldn’t have helped the floor’s structural integrity, which likely wasn’t designed to withstand subzero temperatures. The only thing that would have made it worse was if a fire started.

 

“Everyone okay?” she called out as the first streaks of light began to peek into her icy cavern.

 

“Ugh, everything hurts…” Spoiler grunted out from beneath her own pile. “But I’m okay.”

 

She was covered from head to foot in icy rubble, her bo staff extended to prevent larger chunks from crushing her. Beside her was Red Robin, who had extended his bo staff’s shield to do the same thing. Nora sighed in relief at seeing them unharmed, although they were clearly injured. Mostly cuts and bruises, luckily. But, to her alarm, she didn’t see Ren. Her head swiveled around the room, trying to find her partner and boyfriend, but soon enough she saw a mound of ice being pushed upward and to the side. Ren was now fully exposed, his green suit covered in icy powder that he quickly shook off.

 

“I’m good. Aura took most of the impact,” he revealed.

 

“Lucky, oohh,” Spoiler groaned again she rose to her feet, clutching her side. Red Robin was holding his side as well, and together the two non-powered heroes were helping each other to their feet.

 

“You guys good?” Nora asked. Even with their years of training and experience, a fall due to a collapsing floor could easily override that.

 

“Winded,” Red Robin admitted as he pulled out a syringe gun and injected a painkiller into his leg. He winced at first, then sighed in relief as the cocktail did its job. The pain now alleviated, he looked towards Spoiler to see she had done the same thing.

 

“We should be,” Spoiler said. “At least for now. We’ll get patched up once we’re done here.”

 

Ren and Nora looked at each other. Both of them were relatively unharmed, but that was entirely due to their Aura. Neither Red Robin nor Spoiler had that luxury, and only now did they see that. Aura was ubiquitous to life on Remnant, but it wasn’t here. Blows that they could shrug off were life threatening on Earth. It was a humbling thought. Part of them wondered whether or not they should have Red Robin and Spoiler stay behind to nurse their wounds, but at the same time knew that trying to insist on that was not only patronizing towards their friends, but also mildly insulting. So, they didn’t even bother trying to ask, and merely looked back at their fellow superheroes and nodded.

 

“Where’d he go?” Nora asked as she broke the ice off her grapple gun, her comrades doing the same.

 

“I have an idea,” Red Robin replied tersely. Together, the four heroes zipped themselves back up to the floor they had fallen from, landing on the ice-coated hallway and making their way back up the stairs. Nora shattered the wall of ice blocking them with her hammer, allowing them to proceed. Yet, as they traveled up the stairs, more walls and sheets of ice greeted them, marking the path Freeze had taken while further blocking their advance. Nora was forced to break each one, which luckily for her didn’t take more than one or two blows. To their alarm, it quickly became apparent that the ice was leading straight to Powers’ office, where the door was shattered into frozen chunks. Inside they saw no sign of Powers, but clear evidence of Freeze. The desk was shattered against the wall and lying next to the back window was a sawed-off double-barrel shotgun with two spent shells still inside. The carpet showed signs of an individual back-crawling away, and the faint image of a man’s back was visible on the glass window.

 

“Fries was here,” Red Robin revealed, using his mask to highlight the supervillains’ footsteps. Using the scattered bits of evidence from around the room, he reconstructed the crime scene, which was equally shared between his teammates. They saw Fries break into the room, Powers pulling a shotgun from under his desk and firing in a blind panic, only for the bullets to do nothing against  his armored suit. The desk was violently thrown aside, and Mr. Freeze grabbed Powers by the neck and pressed him to the glass window.

 

“What happened next?” Nora asked. Red Robin nodded, then fast-forwarded the reconstruction. They saw Mr. Freeze, still holding Powers by the neck, drag him away. They followed the trail, the carpet showing scrapes where Powers’ heels were dragged. A few jagged sections showed that he was struggling, until finally the trail ceased at the elevator.

 

The heroes all looked at each other, then Nora pressed the call button. There was no indicator that showed which floor the car was coming up from, but that wasn’t an issue. They patiently waited, Nora tilting back and forth on her heels before finally the car doors opened, granting them entry.

 

“Fingerprints show…” Spoiler narrowed her eyes as she looked at various buttons. “Hold on, I’m not seeing any. At least any that are recent.”

 

“What? Let me see,” Red Robin stated as he went to look. True enough, there was none, causing him to furrow his brow. “Something’s not right.”

 

“Maybe there’s a secret panel?” Nora suggested. The others thought it over, then began to look around the car for any electronic signatures. The Pink Lightning found an anomaly easily enough and ripped out the wood panel that covered it. There she found a GothTech security screen, complete with built-in keyboard and green-tinted screen. “Found it. Spoiler, will you do the honors?”

 

“It’ll be my pleasure,” Spoiler replied, walking over and pulling out a hacking device. She quickly bypassed the security screen’s firewalls and internal defenses, entering the passcode within just a few seconds. Now finished, Spoiler put away her device just as the screen flickered and came to life. It asked them whether they would confirm they wished to descend, and the heroes couldn’t help but smirk at their success.

 

“Remind me to get Oracle something nice,” Ren said as he checked his weapons. The others nodded, then with one final look between themselves they pressed the enter key. Slowly, the car doors closed, and they felt the car descend. A repetitive musical tone began to play in the car, which quickly got on all of their nerves before Nora had enough and jabbed the end of Magnhild’s handle into the speaker, shutting the music off.

 

“Thank you,” Spoiler told Nora, who smiled back before looking back at the elevator’s floor indicator. They were now in the basement, and once they reached the floor marked B2 they prepared to disembark, but instead it continued going down.

 

“What the?” she wondered aloud as the car continued down to B3, where it finally stopped. Confused, Nora pulled up GothCorp’s schematics, but to her surprise, she found nothing. “This floor’s not on the schematics.”

 

“I can see that,” Red Robin noted with a frown. Once again, his suspicion regarding Powers was being proved well founded. “Whatever they did down here, GothCorp obviously didn’t want anyone to find out about it.”

 

“Too bad for them, then,” Ren calmly joked, pulling back the slides of his weapons. Despite himself, Red Robin couldn’t help but smirk, then together the four heroes made their way inside. The elevator closed behind them with a small clang, but their attentions were focused squarely in front of them. As with the floors above, layers of ice coated the walls, ceiling, and floor, thin enough to be crushed underfoot as they traversed the hallways. The hallway itself was made out of thick concrete, thick enough so that it insulated the interior from any signals getting in or out.

 

‘ _Certainly explains why no one noticed this before,_ ’ Ren thought as he and Nora took point, his weapons raised forward while Nora had shifted Magnhild into its grenade launcher configuration. There was a slight but noticeable slope to the hallway they were in, but that didn’t concern the Verdant Lotus all that much. The more they went down, the more noticeable it got, but most of all it confirmed that what Red Robin had said before was true: Daniel Powers, and GothCorp by extension, was hiding something. Something that caught Mr. Freeze’s attention, and now they were all paying the price for it.

 

“Hold up,” Nora called out as they came across a pair of frozen double-doors. She scanned her mask for anything inside, but the walls were too thick to see through. Silently, the four heroes went into pairs and took cover behind the door. Nora shifted Magnhild back into a hammer, then raised it up high. She internally counted to three, then at once swung her weapon into the frozen metal. The impact shattered it off its hinges, sending the two doors flying into the room. The heroes stormed into the room with their weapons drawn, searching for any sign of activity, but instead found only the frozen body of a scientist. A nametag reading ‘Baxter’ could be seen on the man’s chest.

 

“Goddammit,” Red Robin grunted. Holstering his staff, he took a look around the room and quickly noticed a series of computers scattered around various desks. Next to them were research equipment, charts and pages upon pages of data, telling him that this was a research lab. Most of it was frozen completely solid, but some were thankfully still operational.

 

“Give me a moment,” Spoiler said as she went to a computer and tried to log in. It tried to prevent her from doing so, but once again Oracle’s algorithm made short work of its security. “I’m in. Hold on, it says that this computer isn’t set up to GothCorp’s intranet. It’s on its own independent server.”

 

“That’s not suspicious at all,” Nora sarcastically replied, shaking her head in disappointment.

 

“Agreed,” Red Robin spoke up. “I’m going to see where Freeze went. See if you guys can’t find anything.”

 

“On it,” Ren responded, quickly taking a seat next to another functional computer. Nora sat next to him, riffling through papers as they scoured GothCorp’s hidden servers for anything of note. What they found shocked them.

 

As it turned out, the documents they were reading, scanning, and downloading painted a much bleaker picture of GothCorp’s finances. They already weren’t that good, but it quickly became apparent that the numbers GothCorp gave to investors were outright fraudulent. In truth, GothCorp was rapidly dying, having not made a quarterly profit in nearly two years. Expenses continued to increase as the company tried everything to save itself, but nothing worked. Lies became exposed, such as the fact that the aerosolizing chamber GothCorp had made, the very same that Powers had espoused as being a great product, wasn’t just in the process of being approved by the federal government. It had been outright rejected on the grounds that it was too easy to be weaponized. The government had requested a redesign, one that was far too costly for GothCorp to bear, so instead they began to offer it to LexCorp. Apparently, LexCorp was highly interested in the design and the offer they were making could have saved the company, at least in the short term.

 

“Of course,” Ren frowned and shook his head as he continued to read. “Something tells me Lex had the aerosolizing chamber stolen in order to both avoid paying them as well as throw off suspicion.”

 

“Looks like much of the problem was that GothCorp was just too big,” Nora read aloud, showing Ren the appropriate document. Indeed, employee expenses were by far the largest expenditure GothCorp was facing, but for some reason the number of employees remained static. From what little she knew about corporate finance, if a company was too big to sustain itself then layoffs were to be expected, yet that didn’t happen here.

 

“Powers had mentioned that he would have to reluctantly start doing layoffs soon,” Ren pointed out. “Perhaps that’s why it hasn’t happen yet?”

 

“Great, so a CEO committed fraud and stifled an investigation in order to prevent layoffs,” Red Robin grunted from across the room. “Better than greed, I suppose.”

 

“Doesn’t make it right.” Spoiler frowned, her fingers dancing across the keyboard. Everything she had read she had already downloaded, and she did the same thing with every new piece of information she came across. Eventually, she found a folder that caught her curiosity, and she opened it to find a series of videos.

 

“Hold up, I found something,” she called out, catching everyone’s attention. They went over to her and leaned in to get a better look. She was hovering over the first one, dated just a week before Scarecrow’s attack.

 

“What are you waiting for?” Nora asked, tilting her head to the side to give a sideways glance. Without saying a word, Spoiler pulled up the first video and opened it, pulling up the built-in video player. Then she pressed play, leaning back to allow everyone to get a better look.

 

“ _Mr. Powers,_ ” they saw an unnamed scientist enter Powers’ office, holding a clipboard in one hand, “ _I don’t think—”_

 

“ _I don’t want excuses,_ ” Powers interrupted him, sitting down at his desk and giving the scientist an angry glare. “ _All I want to know is, can it be done?_ ”

 

“ _I…_ ” The scientist sighed, then nodded. “ _Theoretically? Yes, it can. But GothCorp’s cryology department was entirely dependent on Victor Fries, and we don’t have his research anymore. No one does. He destroyed it along with the entire lab._ ”

 

“ _Damn you, Boyle. So focused on that damn cryo-gun that you didn’t see the bigger picture,_ ” Powers cursed. He sighed, then rubbed the back of his head. “ _How long would it take to recreate what Victor did?_ ”

 

“ _Years, at least. You have to understand, Fries was a master of his field. No one’s been able to match what he’s done, and you want us to recreate it in months. I’m afraid it’s impossible._ ”

 

The recording showed Powers glare at the scientist. Part of them were afraid that he’d lash out, but instead Powers merely sighed in disappointment and stood up, facing his office’s window.

 

“ _I’ll allocate more funding to the cryology department. It’s the only thing now that’ll save this company, and we can’t afford to let past mistakes define us._ ”

 

“ _Sir? What about the-?_ ”

 

“ _The aerosolizing chamber’s patent was denied. Those hand-wringing idiots at the patent office felt it was too easy to be weaponized._ ” Powers scoffed and shook his head. “ _Years of work, all flushed down the drain because of a few unelected bureaucrats._ ”

 

The recording ceased, prompting the heroes to turn and face each other.

 

“They were trying to recreate Freeze’s work? Why?” Nora asked.

 

“What that scientist said was correct,” Red Robin replied. “Fries’ work in cryology was unprecedented. The man, in a matter of months, advanced the field further than decades of research could do. He was able to successfully preserve living tissue in cryogenic stasis _without_ irreparably harming it. He could even keep a person alive in cryogenic stasis…indefinitely.”

 

“Why the hell did Boyle squander that?” Ren asked, already seeing the potential applications of such a technology.

 

“Ferris Boyle was an incredibly shortsighted, arrogant and greedy man. He saw the work Fries had done and instead of thinking of peaceful, long term ways to market it, he instead saw short term potential for profit in weaponization,” Red Robin clarified, frowning to himself. “Something that Powers apparently recognized.”

 

“I don’t think there’s any lost love between them,” Nora noted, then motioned for the next video to be played. This one was dated the very day after Scarecrow’s attack, and something told her that she already knew its contents. Once it began playing, she found that her guess was accurate.

 

“ _Damn it!_ ” Powers screamed as he and the rest of GothCorp’s scientists and engineers scrambled around one of GothCorp’s research labs. “ _How could this happen?! The aerosolizing chamber wasn’t designed to be used in a bomb!_ ”

 

“ _Sir, I think we found a possible explanation,_ ” another unnamed scientist revealed, showing Powers a schematic of the device in question. “ _They modified the fuel and pressure valves, causing the internal pressure to build to dangerously high levels, and the compact space increased the fear gas’s volatility._ _It was…horrifyingly easy._ ”

 

“ _Fuck!_ ” Powers cursed, throwing the chamber away. “ _I want to know who did this. Now! I want every recording, every guard, every single person who was here on that night interrogated. Do you understand me?_ ”

 

“ _Yes, sir,_ ” the scientist replied, already issuing out orders to carry out Powers’ command. Seeing how the video continued, Spoiler fast forwarded, showing Powers now hanging his head over a tablet, showing the very break in footage they themselves reviewed previously.

 

“ _Sir, I’m afraid that the individuals in question were—”_ a security guard prepared to say, but Powers cut him off with a raised hand.

 

“ _I know who they are. Everyone in Gotham knows who they are,_ ” Powers revealed. “ _And they stole the device after I started talking to Lex Luthor. Perfect._ ”

 

“ _Should I take this to the police?_ ”

 

“ _What do you think would happen if people found out that GothCorp technology was used in a terrorist attack?_ ” Powers replied, looking at the security guard in exasperation. “ _How do you think the League would react to the fact that I tried to sell a piece of banned technology to LexCorp? It doesn’t matter if we’re the victim, we’ll be blamed and GothCorp will be ruined. Hundreds of jobs would be destroyed, people would be arrested, and things could happen that I can’t even think of. No, we keep this under wraps and away from the public._ ”

 

“ _I…don’t think that’s wise, sir,_ ” the guard pointed out. Powers sighed and lowered his head.

 

“ _I know, but it’s the only choice I have. Understand, however, that everything you just learned was covered in your nondisclosure agreement._ ”

 

The threat inherent in Powers’ words was easily apparent to the security guard, who grimaced but nodded.

 

“ _Good, glad you and I are on the same page._ ” Powers stood up. “ _If the police or any other heroes come by, then by all means we’ll cooperate. But until then, it’s business as usual. I want the security around the building increased, spare no expense. This_ cannot _happen again, understand?_ ”

 

“ _Of course, sir,_ ” the guard replied, then the recording ceased. Once again, the heroes look at each other, frowns crossing all of their faces.

 

“He…lied to us. Told us they never noticed the ninjas before,” Nora pointed out, clenching her fist tightly. “Powers knew the entire time…and did nothing out of fear he’d be blamed.”

 

“Fear is often irrational, and can make a person do the wrong thing,” Ren said remorsefully. “But, as enlightening as this was, it still doesn’t answer why Mr. Freeze attacked the building.”

 

“Play the last one,” Red Robin ordered. Spoiler nodded then did as instructed, pulling up the final video that was dated a few days after the previous. At once, all of their eyes widened in realization. There, in the center of the room, laid a giant glass tube filled with ice. Suspended in the center was a beautiful woman with long, blonde hair, dressed in a fair white dress.

 

“Powers…what have you done?” Red Robin asked himself while the video played before him.

 

“ _Mr. Cobblepot, thank you for delivering the package,_ ” Powers spoke over the phone. The video’s audio wasn’t sharp enough to pick up the Penguin’s side of the conversation, but they had enough on their end to infer what was going on. “ _Yes, yes, the payment has already been transferred to one of your accounts. Pleasure doing business with you._ ”

 

Powers hung up, then scowled. “ _Foul man. But I don’t suppose I’m any different. It doesn’t matter, now. Even if I didn’t do this, they would have blamed me, anyway._ ”

 

He got up, then walked to the window overlooking Nora’s tube. “ _Nora Fries. It’s truly a shame what happened to you. I wouldn’t wish Huntington’s Chorea on anyone. I truly wish that I didn’t have to do this, but events outside of my control left me with no choice._ ”

 

The door into the room opened, and Powers turned to face one of the scientists. He had a nervous disposition on his face, but Powers seemed unconcerned.

 

“ _How goes the research?_ ” he asked, and the researcher nodded before replying.

 

“ _What went into Mrs. Fries is nothing short of miraculous. She’d been frozen for over a decade, yet there’s no signs of any tissue degradation or long-term harm. She could be thawed out today, and other than her illness, which itself has completely halted its spread throughout her body, she’d be perfectly fine._ ”

 

“ _Outstanding,_ ” Powers replied, a genuine smile on his face. “ _Can you recreate it?_ ”

 

“ _With enough time, yes, but that’s the problem._ ” The scientist looked at Nora Fries once more, then back at Daniel Powers. “ _Mr. Powers, I don’t know if we can conduct the research we need on her without causing irreparable damage._ ”

 

“ _What do you mean?_ ” Powers asked, the look on his face showing that he already knew the answer.

 

“ _We simply don’t know enough about what Victor Fries did, the technology he built. We’d have to take the machine apart, which would inevitably thaw her out. Then, her terminal illness would kill her._ ”

 

Powers frowned, clenching his fists. Then he steeled himself and turned to face the scientist. “ _Dr. Baxter, as much as it pains me to say this, our research into cryogenics is too important. Do you understand what we can do with such a technology? Better food preservation, storage of medicines indefinitely, space colonization, and more. And that’s ignoring the very reason why Victor invented this. If we find a way to recreate what he did, we can apply it to thousands of people with diseases on the cusp of being cured, saving thousands of lives. I think that’s worth the possible loss of one life._ ”

 

Dr. Baxter looked at Powers then back at Nora. Finally, he too steeled himself, and nodded back at Daniel Powers.

 

“ _We’ll do everything we can to prevent her death, but if it comes to it,_ ” Powers continued, “ _we’ll at least make her comfortable._ ”

 

The video ceased. A heavy silence fell over the group as they all stared at the now blank monitor. It, and the rest of the videos, explained so much. Powers had been lying the entire time, about GothCorp’s financial situation, about the break in, everything. The man was desperate to save the company, and so he committed copious amounts of white-collar crime, but when Scarecrow attacked, he was afraid they’d be blamed. So, he covered it up, then decided that since they’d be blamed anyway, he might as well go all out in a last-ditch effort to save the company.

 

“Powers, you idiot,” Red Robin spoke softly. So much of this could have been avoided if he had just been honest with everyone, but now people were dead at the hands of a vengeful husband looking for his wife. Powers should have known Mr. Freeze wouldn’t take his wife’s kidnapping lightly.

 

“Where is he?” Nora asked, her voice appearing calm but in truth hiding a deep remorse. Her arm was shaking from the swirling mixture of emotions inside of her head, which Ren noticed. He knew how she felt, for he both knew her and was feeling the exact same thing. In response, he gently took her hand into his own, which finally calmed the Pink Lightning down. She held his hand tightly, then the two looked at Red Robin.

 

“Found him,” he said, pointing towards a frozen door on the left side of the research lab. Without saying a word, Nora pulled Magnhild from her back, aimed it at the door, then fired a trio of incendiary charges into the ice. The charges buried themselves deep, then began to glow bright orange from the intense heat they were emitting. The ice boiled away quickly, leaving only the metal door behind. Rather than wait for the door to cool down, Nora fired an impact grenade into its center, blowing it off its hinges and granting them entry.

 

“After you,” she offered. Ren, Spoiler, and Red Robin gladly took her offer, and the four raced down the sloped hallway. A few frozen doors blocked their path, but Nora quickly brought them down with Magnhild. The ice grew thicker as they continued down, but it didn’t slow them in the slightest. Finally, they reached their destination, blocked off by a door and wall coated in several feet of ice. Once again Nora fired incendiary charges into the mass, melting the ice away. She prepared to blast open the door, but Ren stopped her. Instead, he holstered Stormflower, prompting the others to do so as well, and then gently pushed the door open.

 

Frigid air greeted them, causing the heroes to shiver. But they weren’t focused on that. Instead, they were focused on the man before them, standing on a raised circular podium surrounded by frozen railings. Frozen and broken lab equipment surrounded the central podium, which centered around Nora Fries’ tube. If Mr. Freeze knew of their presence, he didn’t see fit to acknowledge it. Instead, he held his hand gingerly to the glass, rubbing it up and down to brush away the obscuring frost.

 

“Victor,” Red Robin announced softly. Mr. Freeze didn’t turn around to face them, instead continuing to watch his wife.

 

“Is that her?” Nora asked. Mr. Freeze didn’t respond, but Nora could sense his answer. She nodded, then added, “She’s beautiful.”

 

Silence reigned over them, finally broken by Mr. Freeze’s cold voice coming out of his suit.

 

“She is,” Mr. Freeze agreed. “Nora is everything to me. The lone spot of warmth in an otherwise frigid life.”

 

More silence followed, and Spoiler stepped up. “Victor, let us end this. We can help get her out.”

 

Mr. Freeze said nothing, continuing to stare at his wife, but his hand was pulled away from the glass. With his back still turned to the heroes, he began to speak.

 

“Have you ever seen a flower die? Watched something that was once so beautiful, so full of life, collapse and rot from within? I have. Numerous times across my life, but none were so beautiful as Nora. Where I was cold and detached, she was joyous and outgoing. She saw me, and where others saw an outcast, she saw a friend. Eventually, we became lovers, and finally husband and wife.”

 

“She sounds like an amazing person,” Nora replied.

 

“She is. I never deserved her, but she stayed regardless. For the first time in my life, I was happy because of her.” Victor frowned, then clenched his fist. “Then fate turned cruel, made her sick beyond man’s ability to heal. She, and everyone else, accepted what fate had bestowed upon her, but not me. I never gave up on her, and devoted my life to saving her. Only for those around me to intervene, to sabotage me. Much like the late Daniel Powers.”

 

Silently, the team turned their heads to the far wall, where they saw Powers’ frozen body attached to the wall. He had been thrown into the air, likely by Mr. Freeze himself, and he had shot him just as his head hit the wall. No life signs were visible, and Nora closed her eyes and looked away in remorse.

 

Mr. Freeze, however, had no remorse to give.

 

“We know what he did, Victor,” Spoiler called out, trying to talk him down. “He shouldn’t have taken Nora from you, but you shouldn’t have killed him. He should have faced trial.”

 

“He would have killed my wife just to recreate what I’ve done. He stole her from me, had men beat me when I tried to stop them, and when I finally caught up to him, he had the gall to say she was a lost cause,” Mr. Freeze spat and snarled, then turned around to face them. “You may call me a monster, and you’d be right. But if I must be a monster to save Nora, then let me be a monster. Nothing less will save her.”

 

“We don’t have to do this,” Nora begged, but Mr. Freeze shook his head.

 

“Do you know what it’s like to have the only thing that matters to you taken away, to never get it back? To me, the chance to save what I’ve lost, no matter how slim, is worth any price. I’m willing to do anything for the memories of those warm summer days.

 

“I’d kill for it.”

 

Without warning, Mr. Freeze aimed his cryo-gun and fired at them. They dived away, the torrent of ice exploding where they just stood, and they rolled to their feet with their weapons drawn. Nora prepared to fire grenades at their enemy, but then saw Nora Fries’ body once again. Knowing that using explosives was too risky, Nora frowned and shifted her weapon into a hammer once again. Normally, she’d imagine that she’d be excited about this, but there was nothing to be excited about here.

 

Ren, meanwhile, strafed the podium, firing Stormflower into Freeze’s chest as he passed. All of his shots rang true, angering the icy supervillain enough to cause him to jump over the railing. The weight of his cryo-suit striking the frozen ground shattered the ice around his feet, and a metal bang rebounded across the room. He began to walk towards the Verdant Lotus with heavy steps, walking over a metal grate, but as he passed one, it exploded upwards as Red Robin sprang his trap. Surprised, Mr. Freeze was helpless as Red Robin pushed him to the floor, with Ren adding his weight to the villain’s head. Together, they began to rain punch after punch into Mr. Freeze’s helmet and chest. The glass cracked, and the metal dented, but finally Mr. Freeze was able to shake them off and throw them to the side. Angered, he aimed and fired his cryo-gun at them once again, forcing the two heroes to leap away for safety. Now with a momentary respite, Mr. Freeze looked down to see the grates in question, then frowned.

 

“A clever trick, one that won’t work again,” he said, then promptly froze the grates entirely. He proceeded to freeze the rest of the grates, forcing a startled Spoiler to leap out of one just before getting frozen. Part of her cape was struck by the icy blast, but she was able to rip it off without issue.

 

“Aw, man. I liked that cape,” she complained, then threw a trio of shurikens into Mr. Freeze. The thrown projectiles did nothing to him, but it did make her feel better. From the side, a recovered Ren charged at Mr. Freeze and delivered a jumping knee into his side, the Aura-reinforced blow sending the supervillain back. Ren attempted to follow up with a palm strike, but Mr. Freeze retaliated first by socking Ren across the jaw with his free hand. Before he could retaliate, Mr. Freeze immediately followed up the hit with a point-blank blast from his cryo-gun from the hip, hitting Ren and encasing him in a layer of ice, which was promptly broken apart as Mr. Freeze backhanded him away.

 

“Gagh!” Ren grunted, feeling the frostbite strike his nerves.

 

“So, you two _do_ have powers. Intriguing,” Mr. Freeze noted, adjusting a valve on the side of his cryo-gun. “No matter. I have ways to compensate.”

 

He aimed his weapon at Ren once again, only for an ‘R’-shaped shuriken to sever the cable connecting it to his suit. Cryogenic gas spewed out, freezing part of his suit before it was automatically sealed. Mr. Freeze looked at the severed connection with a frown, then back up at his frozen wife. Unlike their encounter before, this wasn’t an opportune environment for him. They had more room to maneuver, more cover to hide behind. He had to end this quickly, lest all his work be undone.

 

Knowing that he had a limited supply of internal cryogenic fluid, Mr. Freeze switched his weapon from its typical jet to burst. He aimed it at Red Robin and fired a trio of shots towards him. The icy projectiles impacted against the wall where Red Robin previously stood, simultaneously shattering and freezing several embedded computers. More shots followed Red Robin’s retreating form, and Mr. Freeze stomped after the young vigilante.

 

“Hi-yah!” Nora shouted as she leaped off a railing from above, swinging Magnhild down atop Mr. Freeze’s back, sending him sprawling to the ground. Flipping him over, she threw several powerful punches into his faceplate, careful not to punch too hard less she risk severely injuring the man. The glass’s thickness did help in that, admittedly, but even then, more cracks began to appear on its surface. She prepared to throw another punch, only for Mr. Freeze to move his head to the side at the last second, causing Nora to strike the frozen ground beside him. He then raised his upper torso sharply, headbutting her and forcing Nora to stumble back. Rising to his feet, he grabbed her arm and pulled her towards him, following it up with a powerful jab into her gut.

 

“Ooof!” Nora grunted as she fell to her knees, then felt Mr. Freeze pick her up by the scruff of her costume and hurl her across the room. As she fell, Mr. Freeze quickly froze the railings around the room, wanting to ensure they wouldn’t be used against him once again. He then prepared to fire again, only for Nora to suddenly shoot him with a grenade, sending the supervillain flying back. The shockwave shattered much of the ice around it, with icicles breaking from their bases and falling to the ground in pieces. Placing Magnhild up to her shoulder, Nora glanced up at Nora Fries’ tube to see that it was unharmed, then prepared to fire again. Just as she prepared to pull the trigger, however, the barrel was covered in ice, causing the weapon to jam.

 

“Oh no,” Nora sighed, then ducked under a trio of shots. Mr. Freeze, now heavily damaged and leaking coolant everywhere, was glaring into Nora with a murderous expression.

 

“You will not take her from me!” he declared, firing more shots at her. Nora dodged them, taking cover behind a steel column.

 

“We’re not trying to take her from you!” Nora called out as she punched the ice off her weapon’s barrel, diving for another column just as more shots rang towards her.

 

“That’s what they all say!” Mr. Freeze replied, his anger and rage blinding him. Nora dived away from another attack from the implacable man, loading her remaining spare grenades into Magnhild at the same time. Hearing the whine of the cryo-gun, Nora dived away once again, only this time Mr. Freeze was ready. Anticipating her movement, he shot her in the leg, encasing it in ice and causing her to fall to the ground. The sudden impact caused Magnhild to be thrown from her hands and it skittered across the frozen metal floor. The cold bit deep into her flesh, her Aura straining to keep any actual damage at bay, and Nora Valkyrie winced in agony. Wordlessly, Mr. Freeze strode up to her, raising his cryo-gun towards her head and prepared to fire, only for Ren to leap towards him from the side. The Verdant Lotus tackled Mr. Freeze to the ground, prying at the man’s gun and wresting it from his hands. He threw it to the side, only for Mr. Freeze to punch Ren in the chest to send him flying back.

 

Ren’s back hit the ground, but he carried his momentum into a roll, only to see Mr. Freeze charging at him. Knowing he didn’t have enough time to get out of the way, and hastily coming up with a plan that necessitated him being close to Mr. Freeze, Ren braced himself, then felt his feet lift from the ground and his back be slammed into embedded computers. Sparks flew wildly, and he felt a tingle of electricity, but he didn’t care about that. Instead of getting the supervillain off of him, which he knew that he could more than easily do, Ren grabbed hold of Mr. Freeze’s arm and used his Semblance, causing Mr. Freeze to suddenly feel a sense of tranquility.

 

“Victor,” Ren calmly said, both of them under his Semblance’s spell, “we don’t want to fight you. Stand down.”

 

“You know I can’t do that,” Mr. Freeze replied, then pulled Ren close. “And no amount of emotional manipulation will stop me.”

 

Ren’s eyes widened, then Mr. Freeze violently threw him to the side. Ren landed against a railing, denting it with a loud crack and squeal, then shot to his feet as Mr. Freeze strode over to pick up his gun. Just as he reached down, a still lying down Nora pulled out her grappling gun and fired it at the weapon, pulling it towards her. At the same time, she banged her fist against the cast of ice on her leg, freeing it and giving her full movement of the limb.

 

“Ahh,” she sighed in relief as she picked herself off the ground. For a moment, she considered firing the weapon at Mr. Freeze in a bit of irony, only to see the supervillain re-engaged in a close-quarters brawl with Ren. A fight that Ren was clearly winning, but not one Nora was willing to sit back and watch. They were too close for her to make an accurate shot, so instead she placed it against her back and prepared to charge forward.

 

“Pink Lightning, are you alright?” Red Robin asked as he called down towards her, perched on a light fixture.

 

“I’m good!” she called back, then turned towards Mr. Freeze just as Spoiler glided in beside her. “Let’s finish this.”

 

“Totally,” Spoiler replied, unfurling her bo staff with a twirl, and together the two women charged at Mr. Freeze. Nora, her fists raised, went high while Spoiler went low, the bo staff striking Mr. Freeze’s knees and dropping him while Nora punched his face plate. A large crack spider-webbed from the impact zone, which was followed by Red Robin leaping at him from above and crashing the helmet into the ground. The glass shattered, and together the four heroes held a struggling Mr. Freeze down. Despite the damage it had sustained, he was still putting up quite a fight, but together the heroes were preventing him from making much headway.

 

“Mr. Freeze, stop this!” Nora begged, but the maddened continued to struggle. He even tried reaching for the cryo-gun attached to Nora’s back, but she managed to keep it away. A frown stretched across her face, and her mind struggled to find a way to finally get him to see reason. Then, her mind drifted back to the start of their fight, and an idea took root in her head.

 

“Victor,” she spoke softly, “you asked us if we ever knew what it was like to have something taken from us. I want to tell you that we do.”

 

“You know nothing about what I’ve lost!” Victor maintained, but Nora shook her head. Ren, meanwhile, understood the direction Nora was going.

 

“You’re right. We don’t know exactly what you’ve been through,” Ren continued. “But Pink Lightning and I…we lost everything we held dear in an instant, taken from us by a cruel twist of fate several times. The first when we were only children, the next just a few months ago, but through it all we’ve held each other up. Just like you and Nora.”

 

Mr. Freeze stopped his struggling, then turned his head to look at Ren and Nora from behind the shattered lenses of his goggles. Seizing the opening, Nora continued.

 

“Verdant Lotus and I…we’ve depended on each other ever since we were kids. We can’t imagine life without each other, and I can’t even think about what I would do if he was taken from me. Victor, you love your wife, and that love has driven you to do both great and terrible things. Please, stop this.”

 

“I…” Victor began. “I can’t stop… If I do…”

 

“None of us want to take her from you, Victor,” Red Robin said softly. “All of us want to help her, so let us help you save her.”

 

“Please,” Spoiler begged. Victor stared at them for a moment, his hands twitching for a weapon that wasn’t there, then his gaze fell upon the frozen body of his wife. Even now, fully encased in ice, she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever laid eyes on. His memories fell into the happy moments she gave him, and he gave her. The day they first met, their first date, their wedding day. Happiness turned to sorrow as her body began to fail her, and everyone around her gave up on her. For the first time since she was taken from him, tears began to fall from Victor Fries’ eyes, and he hung his head. His arms went limp, and silently surrendered. The heroes silently accepted it, then braced him against a wall and handcuffed his hands to a thick column before leaving.

 

Victor sat silently, ruminating in his thoughts, before several flashlights flooded the chamber. Gotham PD’s Major Crimes Unit fanned out with their weapons raised, searching for any signs of threats. Behind them, a woman with short blonde hair and wearing a tactical vest emblazoned with the letters ‘MCU’ on its center, stepped into the chamber, a deep frown on her face as she took everything in.

 

“My God…” an officer breathed out, taking off his hat at the sight of the carnage before him. The captain, meanwhile, made a beeline towards a silent Victor Fries, kneeling next to the defeated man. Victor raised his head to stare back up at the commissioner, who stared back sullenly before standing upright.

 

“Cornwell, get back up top. We need a refrigerated car,” The woman ordered. She then took a glance back up at Nora’s tube, then turned back to her partner. “Make it two.”

 

“You got it, Maggie,” David Cornwell replied, then he silently made his back up the building while his partner, Captain Maggie Sawyer, stayed behind.

 

~

 

From high above a nearby building, Nora, Ren, Red Robin and Spoiler watched as GCPD swarmed the GothCorp building. An airship was hanging overhead, shining a spotlight down as Victor Fries was loaded into a specially designed refrigerated car, meant to keep him alive as they transferred him to the specialized cell waiting for him in Arkham. In the loading bay, they saw specialized engineers load Nora’s chamber into another specialized car, a lengthy process in and of itself. They quickly noticed that Mr. Freeze didn’t enter his car until he saw Nora safely stored. Only then did they get him inside, and soon all the cars drove off, sirens blazing, towards Arkham Asylum.

 

“You know,” Nora finally said in a sullen tone, “I thought beating supervillains was supposed to be…exciting, or maybe giving a sense of pride. I don’t feel that here. I just feel wrung out.”

 

“I know what you mean,” Spoiler whispered, her head hanging low. “Sometimes criminals aren’t so cut and dry. They’re usually the hardest to deal with. Or identify.”

 

“I like it better when it’s simple,” Nora admitted. Spoiler looked at the sullen girl and nodded.

 

“Me too. Me too.”

 

Without saying another word, the heroes left the rooftop behind, leaving no trace of their presence.

 

~

 

On the other side of Gotham, a wholly different scene was playing out. Bruce Wayne was used to his nights being spent in dark alleys or dusty warehouses, surrounded by people who wanted to kill him. But now he was surrounded by cocktails, fancy dresses, and people who wanted to suck up to him. He didn’t know which one was worse.

 

“Mr. Wayne!” a socialite called out to him. As easily as it was to breathe, Bruce turned to the woman and smiled widely.

 

“Hello there!” he said. “I hope you’re enjoying the party. It’s for a good cause, I’ve been told.”

 

“Heehee! Indeed, I very much am! You always attend the best parties,” she answered with another laugh, one that Bruce could see right through. She was trying to hit on him, but too bad for her he wasn’t truly interested. But, flirting back would fit his image, and so he played along.

 

“I should hope so. After all, I’m paying for it,” he joked. The woman laughed again, a bit too hard to be fully genuine, but then Bruce saw Lucius Fox beckon him forward. Seizing his opportunity, Bruce nodded towards his friend and looked back at the socialite.

 

“I’m sorry, but Lucius is calling me. You know how demanding he can be.”

 

“Oh,” the woman deflated. “Well, perhaps you and I can save a dance?”

 

“Maybe,” Bruce replied. “I hope you enjoy the party.”

 

Before she could get another word in, Bruce walked away towards Lucius. He was standing at the far end of the room, holding a glass of champagne in hand. Two glasses, actually, which Bruce noticed as he got closer.

 

“Care for a drink?” his friend asked. Bruce prepared to shake his head, but Lucius gave it to him anyway. “Here you are, the expected drink for the man of the hour.”

 

“… Thank you, Lucius,” Bruce intoned. Lucius chuckled, and a small smirk graced Bruce’s lips. A brief silence fell over them as they watched the partygoers, but neither of them were truly interested in what was going on.

 

“How are they doing?” Lucius asked.

 

“Who are you referring to?” Bruce asked, but Lucius gave him a sideways glance.

 

“Bruce, I’ve known you for decades, so I know when you’ve made yet another adoption.”

 

“I haven’t adopted them.”

 

“They live in your house, it’s practically the same thing,” Lucius pointed out. “And you didn’t answer my question. How are they? Are they healthy, happy, well fed?”

 

“I can definitely attest to that last part. You know how Alfred is,” Bruce joked, and Lucius snorted.

 

“I’ll bet. If any of you went hungry under Alfred’s watch, he’d probably resign in shame.”

 

The two men laughed genuinely, then went back to watching the party. A healthy silence fell over them, then Lucius continued.

 

“Knowing you, they’re probably out there tonight.”

 

“I have every faith in them,” Bruce immediately answered. “I wouldn’t leave them alone if I didn’t.”

 

“I know. That’s why I’m not too worried,” Lucius admitted. “Still, I would very much like to meet them. WayneTech’s Dust Research is still ongoing, and I’m certain they could provide us with some much-needed perspective.”

 

“Is that your excuse, or is that the only reason you want to meet them?” Bruce asked, and Lucius smirked back.

 

“It’s my excuse, certainly.”

 

Bruce smiled back, then leaned against the wall. “I’ll run it by them tomorrow. How’s Luke?”

 

“Still in Afghanistan,” Lucius answered, this time more sullenly. “Most of me is proud of what he’s doing over there, but as his father, I can’t help but worry about him.”

 

Bruce looked at his friend and nodded in sympathy, placing his hand on Lucius’ shoulder. He knew that feeling all too well, both the times that worry was reasonless, and times when it proved fruitful.

 

“I know,” he said. Another healthy silence fell over them, neither feeling the need to continue. Then, out of the corner of his eye, Bruce saw a short mop of brown hair move through the crowd, prompting him to get up off the wall.

 

“I’m sorry, Lucius, but if you’ll excuse me.” Bruce didn’t wait for a response, handing his longtime friend and business associate his champagne glass and weaving through the crowd expertly. His attention never left the short haired woman who had entered the building, who herself seemed to notice his presence. Her body language screamed that she was amused more than anything, and soon enough the two of them stood face to face.

 

“Selina,” Bruce greeted the Catwoman, who was now adorned in a fancy black dress.

 

“Hello Bruce,” Selina smiled. She noticed him looking at her dress, and she gave a mocking curtsey in response. “Do you like it? I heard it’s the latest fashion. Funny, seeing how I paid practically nothing for it.”

 

“Is that right?” Bruce asked with a raised eyebrow, but Selina waved him off.

 

“Oh, don’t be like that. Got it from Alexandra Kosov. She wasn’t wearing it and practically gave it away.”

 

Bruce narrowed his eyes while Selina only grinned back at him. They then heard a change in the music, and Selina gave him a conniving grin.

 

“Oh, would you look at that? Care to give this cat a dance?” Selina asked, practically daring him to say no. Bruce stared back at the cat burglar, then took her hand into his own and together they fell into a dance. The music swelled alongside them, but their attentions were focused squarely on each other.

 

“Why are you really here, Selina?” Bruce asked, and Selina looked affronted.

 

“What, so I can’t just go to a party and have some fun? Do you really think so little of me?”

 

Bruce stared flatly at the Catwoman, who could only hold her affronted expression for so long before it collapsed into a knowing smirk.

 

“Okay, fine. You caught me. This place is filled with people with too much time and money on their hands. You really think I wouldn’t pass this up?”

 

Bruce said nothing at first, then after a moment nodded. “I figured you’d show up eventually.”

 

“Aw, you know me so well.” Selina smiled, then leaned her head against Bruce’s chest. A healthy silence fell between them as they continued to dance, then she looked back up into his eyes. “I met your little protégés tonight.”

 

“Is that so?” Bruce asked.

 

“Yeah, a little blonde and raven-haired girl at the Iceberg Lounge. They had a, well, not good, but an exciting time.”

 

Bruce caught the hidden meaning behind her words, and lightly glared at her. This time, the woman looked a little insulted, and huffed.

 

“Don’t look at me like that, I helped them out.”

 

“Before or after you used them?”

 

“That’s beside the point.” Selina’s non-answer was all the information Bruce needed to connect the dots, and he shook his head.

 

“Thank you, in any case,” Bruce said. Selina smiled back, then the song ended. All of the partners separated and performed the customary bow, but unlike many others the two stayed together. Selina then looked up at Bruce with a wry grin, and despite himself, Bruce couldn’t help but do the same.

 

“So,” Selina intoned, running her finger in circles along Bruce’s chest, “how’s about you and I ditch this place? You may have everyone else here fooled, but not me.”

 

Bruce look down at Selina and raised an eyebrow. “You’re incorrigible, you know that?”

 

“Oh, I know. But so are you,” Selina replied, and Bruce let out a small grin.

 

[~][~]


	33. Training with the Bat-Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team comes down from their successful patrol of Gotham to plan their next moves. At the same time, the dark forces of the world churn in the shadows, setting the stage for things to come.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 24: Training with the Bat-Family **

[~][~]

 

_November 8 th, 1:00 AM_

_Batcave, Gotham City_

 

“Wait, so you guys took down _Bane_?” Damian asked as he, Ruby, Weiss, Blake and Yang flew back towards Wayne Manor in the Batwing.

 

“Yang did,” Blake clarified, pointing her thumb towards the still sleeping blonde who snored loudly as though in response. “As you can see, it took a lot out of her.”

 

Damian looked at Yang, then nodded. “I’m impressed,” he admitted.

 

“Oh, what is this? Damian Wayne actually impressed? I’m shocked,” Weiss joked, showing a faux-scandalous expression on her face. Damian gave her a slight glare in response and rolled his eyes.

 

“Listen, Schnee,” Damian began, “Bane is one of my father’s most dangerous and persistent foes. Even without Venom, Bane has been able to match my father for body and mind. He is not one to be underestimated, and Yang managing to beat him after taking down dozens of Penguin’s thugs is a worthy accomplishment.”

 

“Don’t let her hear you say that. It’ll go straight to her head,” Blake said, looking at her partner, then turned to face Damian. “Still, enough about us. How was your mission?”

 

“Eh, it was alright,” Ruby replied, twirling her hand around in a lazy circle. “Went pretty much as we expected.”

 

“What Ruby is trying to say,” Weiss clarified with an annoyed expression on her face, “is that we had to deal with perhaps the most egotistical, insufferable man we’ve ever met. I swear, if I didn’t know any better, I’d think Edward Nygma was in love with himself. And let’s not even get into how stupid some of his riddles were!”

 

Weiss’ face was growing redder by the second in righteous indignation, but before she could continue, Ruby burst over to her partner in a cloud of petals and began to massage her shoulders.

 

“There, there, Weiss. It’s okay,” Ruby soothed. “The crazy Riddler can’t annoy you anymore.”

 

Weiss growled, then huffed and crossed her arms. “I certainly hope not. If I ever have to deal with him again, it’ll be too soon.”

 

“He’s in Arkham, now,” Damian said, leaning back against his seat and crossing his arms. “Let’s hope he stays there, this time.”

 

“Hopefully,” Ruby agreed with the young sidekick, then frowned. She looked down at her feet, fidgeted for a few seconds, then looked back up. “We saw the Joker, by the way. He was…disturbing, but what was worse was just how scared everyone was of him. Is he really that bad?”

 

“Yes,” Damian stated with absolute certainty. “If it were up to me, he would’ve been put down long ago.”

 

“If that’s the case,” Weiss began, “then why hasn’t he? The death penalty’s a thing, why hasn’t it been used?”

 

Damian looked at her. “Every single time he’s been arrested, his lawyers successfully manage to argue that because the Joker is so insane, he’s not responsible for his actions. Also, the death penalty has been abolished in Gotham for decades, and no one wants to bring it back since it’s so ‘barbaric’. Meaning, so long as the Joker is tried by Gotham courts, he’ll keep being sent to Arkham. He’s always been careful to ensure that remains the case.”

 

Damian frowned and looked to the side. Weiss frowned as well, then tried to wrap her head around the entire situation. From everything she had read about the Joker, the man certainly deserved to be executed. But there was a part of her that was uncomfortable with the concept of such a practice, about the possibility of an imperfect system executing innocent people in other circumstances and cases. After a few moments, she shook her head and let those thoughts subside. If she ever came into conflict with the Joker, which she hoped would never be the case, she’d answer those questions then.

 

The teenage heroes felt their stomachs shift as the Batwing descended beneath the clouds, flying towards a seaside cave underneath Wayne Manor. Rocks shifted, exposing the inner workings of the Batcave, where Alfred was waiting for them with a covered, silver platter in hand.

 

“Greetings, Young Masters,” Alfred said as the Batwing touched down and its ramped door opened. The engine whined as they slowly shuttered off, allowing the natural ambiance of the Batcave to make itself known once again. In the distance, Blake could hear the soft chirps and fluttering of leathery wings as bats flew about. Sometimes she even managed to see a few, but her attention was focused mostly on the butler before them.

 

“I made a midnight snack for everyone,” he revealed, opening the platter to reveal several servings of steaming hors d’oeuvres. They could smell the confections perfectly, causing their stomachs to grumble and managing to rouse Yang from her sleep with a start.

 

“Huh, wha?” she asked as her body registered the food. “Oh, that smells good. Just what a girl needed.”

 

“Why, thank you, Ms. Xiao Long,” Alfred replied as everyone began to take one to chow down upon. “The others are on their way as we speak. Their missions, from what I’ve been told, were a success, with a few complications thrown in.”

 

“What kind of complications?” Ruby asked through a full mouth. Weiss shot her partner an offended look, but Alfred didn’t seem to mind. In fact, he looked more amused than anything.

 

“I’ll let them answer that,” he answered. “Don’t want to get anything wrong. But, rest assured that they are alright.”

 

“Good to know,” Blake replied while chewing on her food. She savored the taste, but not as much as Yang, apparently, as the blonde girl was positively moaning. Blake chuckled at her reaction, it must have been because of the ordeal she went through previously. Something told her that anything would have tasted like that ambrosia Donna talked about to Yang right about now.

 

They then heard the roar of an engine as the Batmobile pulled into the Batcave. Team RWBY, Damian, and Alfred turned towards it to see the doors open on both sides. They saw Jaune, Pyrrha, Jason, and Cassandra step out of the Batmobile, and Ruby smiled as she walked towards them.

 

“Hey, guys! How was the mission?” Ruby asked, only to cock her eyebrow when she saw a crimson blush cross Pyrrha’s face. Jaune was similarly flushed, although his was much less noticeable.

 

“We infiltrated Black Mask’s gang,” Jason explained as he hefted a duffel bag to a nearby workbench. “The bastard was recruiting, so we pretended to be prospects to slip right under his nose.”

 

“How’d that go?” Yang asked after taking a drink of water. Once again, Pyrrha blushed and fidgeted, causing the blonde brawler to wonder what, exactly, had occurred. Before she could ask, however, Jason beat her to the punch.

 

“Without a hitch,” Jason revealed, then turned his head to look at Pyrrha with a smug grin, “at least until P-Money here decided to go all _gangsta_ on everybody _._ ”

 

“Wait, what?” Yang asked, her full attention shooting towards a crimson Pyrrha.

 

“Yep,” Jason replied, popping the ‘p.’ “Apparently, Pyrrha’s idea of ‘blending in’ was to act as over the top as possible while at the same time struggling to hide how nice she really was. She and Jaune ended up getting kicked out of the recruitment for ‘being too nice.’ I have videos, if you want to see it.”

 

“YES!” Yang shouted without a moment’s hesitation.

 

“You said you didn’t record any of it!” Pyrrha shrieked, her blush now luminescent.

 

“I didn’t,” Jason clarified, “but you did. Contacts, remember.”

 

Pyrrha moved to counter, but found that she was unable to do so. Nothing she could say would be sufficient, and so she hung her head and sighed. Jaune was on her immediately, patting her back while shooting Jason a look.

 

“Says the guy who _almost_ joined a gang because he couldn’t dial it back a bit,” Jaune countered, causing everyone’s attention to turn towards Jason Todd. The Red Hood looked at everyone, then shrugged.

 

“Ain’t gonna argue with that, ‘cuz it’s true,” he admitted. He then looked around and pursed his lips. “Say, where’s Tim’s team?”

 

“Running a little late, I’m afraid,” Alfred revealed, handing out more small plates of food. “But they should be arriving shortly.”

 

“Alright.” Internally, Jason and the others were beginning to worry, but felt that Alfred’s assertion was enough to alleviate their concerns. So they hung around the Batcave, conversing among themselves about the specifics of their missions. Ruby, Damian, and Weiss detailed some of the more complex riddles they had to answer, Blake and Yang talked about the firefight they had with Penguin’s goons and their meeting with Catwoman. Yang also took the time to show off her Mossberg 500 she ‘liberated’ from the Penguin, which Ruby and Jason were especially impressed by.

 

“What’re you going to do with it?” Jason asked as he and Yang inspected the pump-action shotgun.

 

“Don’t know yet,” Yang admitted with a shrug. “Either strictly as a trophy or as a backup weapon.”

 

“Hmm,” Ruby hummed, “maybe... I think we can use the frame as a base for a lot of things, actually.”

 

“That’s what I was thinking,” Yang replied. “Rubes, think we can add a mechashift to it?”

 

“Yeah, totally!” Ruby exclaimed with a wide smile, prompting her older sister to laugh. Jason, meanwhile, remained silent. The idea of Yang creating a backup weapon was a smart one, in his opinion, and no matter what she did, he doubted she could go wrong. The Red Hood then looked at Yang’s gauntlets, which the Golden Dragon noticed.

 

“You know,” Jason began, “we could’ve used you against  Solomon Grundy.”

 

“Pyrrha was talking about that,” Yang mentioned. “Heard it was a hell of a fight.”

 

“That it was.” Jason frowned then shook his head. Truth be told, he was more annoyed with how Two-Face used Solomon Grundy as a distraction to get away. With two super-powered fighters on his side, plus the Batmobile, the fight wasn’t too difficult, but it still sucked to see Solomon used like a weapon again. The zombie deserved rest and nothing more. Yang seemed to pick up on his sentiment, and nodded.

 

“Poor guy. Can’t imagine reanimating over and over again,” she admitted, and Jason nodded.

 

“Let me tell you. Coming back to life? It ain’t peachy,” Jason murmured. It was then that Yang remembered that she was talking to a man who literally had come back from the dead. Despite how he might appear ambivalent about it, she suspected that Jason was still haunted by the experience. She knew better than to press forward on it, though, and looked back at her captured shotgun.

 

 “…Maybe an axe?” she offered, to which Jason chuckled and shook his head.

 

“You people and wanting to turn all your guns into melee weapons,” Jason joked, and Yang smiled.

 

“Guilty as charged.” She paused, then threw her thumb over her shoulder towards Jaune. “Except for Vomit Boy over there. He’s more old school.”

 

“I heard that,” Jaune yelled out in a jokingly defensive tone, “and there’s nothing wrong with being old school.”

 

“Never said it was, Vomit Boy!”

 

“And stop calling me that!”

 

“Oh, yeah?” Yang smiled and cocked an eyebrow. “What’cha gonna do about it?”

 

Jaune gave Yang a half-hearted glare. “I grew up with seven sisters, Yang. You don’t want to _know_ the things I can do to you.”

 

“Really?” Yang’s smile grew wider. “Try me, Vomit Boy.”

 

Instead of responding, Jaune narrowed his eyes then looked away. Yang took her victory and smiled, then turned back to the weapon on the worktable before her. Running through her mind were various ways to make use of her newly acquired shotgun, modifications and attachments she could use when they all heard an engine grow nearer. It was coming from the waterway, and in unison everyone turned towards the seaside entrance to the Batcave. They saw the Batboat come in, Ren at the helm and Nora by his side. Tim and Stephanie were clearly talking Ren through operating the craft, telling them how he learned to drive it. At first, they were happy to see their friends arrive safely, but then they saw the solemn expressions on their faces. More worrisome, they saw Tim and Stephanie sitting on the back of the boat, nursing obvious wounds.

 

Jaune and Pyrrha were on their teammates first when the Batboat finally docked. “Ren, what happened?” he asked while helping Tim off the boat, Pyrrha doing the same for Stephanie.

 

Ren looked at his leader’s worried face passively, then answered, “We got to GothCorp. The CEO met us there, cooperated with everything. Then it turned out he had previously kidnapped Nora Fries for research.”

 

“Mr. Powers did _what_?” Alfred gasped, having not heard this part of the story. All he knew was that the GothCorp mission ran into some complications, but to hear that Mrs. Fries was taken from Victor Fries, it appeared that ‘complications’ was an understatement.

 

“Where is he now?” Damian asked, giving Ren his full attention.

 

“Mr. Freeze…killed him,” Nora answered with a sigh, her eyes closed and her head drifting to the side in regret. “We’ll talk more about it when Batman gets back.”

 

The others stared at her, then after a moment, nodded.

 

“Alright. Tim, Stephanie, let’s get you two patched up,” Ruby ordered, not that the Red Robin and Spoiler were in any condition to do otherwise. On the trip back, their painkillers had subsided, allowing the pain of their injuries to come to the forefront. Neither of them knew their full extent, but both guessed at least a couple of broken ribs and deep bruises.

 

“Aagh!” Tim gasped as Jaune accidentally ran his hand across one of his bruises, causing the White Knight to recoil away.

 

“Sorry!” Jaune apologized, but Tim waved him off.

 

“It’s fine, just…set me down,” Tim ordered. Jaune did as instructed, laying Tim Drake down on a cushioned chair while Pyrrha did the same for Stephanie. The two vigilantes were then treated by Alfred, having returned with a first aid kit and was beginning to properly inspect them.

 

“Ren, Nora, you guys okay?” Yang asked, walking over to them.

 

“Nothing our Aura can’t fix,” Nora revealed, her tone much less lively than before. Yang began to wonder what, exactly, went down in GothCorp, but knew now was not the time figure it out. Instead, she and Blake assisted Alfred with caring for their more injured teammates, while the others helped in whatever ways they could. By the time Bruce Wayne finally came down the service elevator into the Batcave, Tim and Stephanie both sported cloth slings across their arms, with gauze and bandages wrapped around their various injuries.

 

“Is everyone alright?” Bruce immediately asked despite already knowing everything.

 

“We’re fine,” Tim insisted with a small wince, to which Bruce slightly frowned.

 

“We’re grounded for a bit, aren’t we?” Stephanie asked with a dry expression. After a moment, Bruce nodded.

 

“In your current condition, yes, you are,” Bruce replied. The two young vigilantes looked at Bruce for a moment, complicated feelings running through their minds, but after a few moments they sighed and nodded in agreement. Logically, they knew that trying to fight crime in an injured state was never a good idea, but their pride didn’t want them to see it that way.

 

Bruce then walked over to the Batcomputer, pressing a few keys to bring up a list of all the information the various teams had acquired over the course of the night. Once again, the Batfamily and teams RWBY and JNPR saw Barbara Gordon’s face in a corner-box on the screen while the rest of it was filled with various video feeds, documents, images and more.

 

“ _First off_ ,” Oracle began, continuing to type away at her keyboard, “ _job well done, guys. Over the past few hours, we managed to nab the Penguin, Black Mask, Bane, the Riddler, Mr. Freeze, and well over a hundred gangsters and criminals from across the city. A productive night, if I say so myself._ ”

 

“Indeed,” Bruce added with a gruff tone. “You all did good work.”

 

“Aww, thank you!” Ruby flashed a toothy grin at the Batman, who almost immediately turned his attention back towards Oracle. To his various protégés, his reaction was something they expected. Bruce never was the best at showing approval, especially when it came to working inside of his city.

 

“Oracle, were you able to determine anything?” Damian asked, wanting to get the debrief back on track.

 

“ _Yes, actually,_ ” Oracle replied, highlighting several pieces of evidence and bringing them to the forefront. “ _Thanks to all the evidence we’ve acquired, both from tonight and from before, I’ve managed to pinpoint several key events and figures that led to Scarecrow’s fear gas attack. Crane had been planning this for quite some time, for at least a month based off what I could see._ ”

 

“Did he already have a buyer?” Blake asked, leaning forward and resting her chin on her fingers.

 

“ _That’s the idea,_ ” Oracle answered.

 

“So, all of this was just a product demonstration?” Weiss asked, disgust filling her voice. When Oracle nodded, Weiss recoiled. “Madman…”

 

“Indeed,” Jason muttered, wishing he had managed to put a bullet in his head that night. From the corner of his eye, Bruce looked at his adoptive son with a disapproving glare, and decided to talk to him alone after this was over.

 

“Oracle, what else were you able to determine?” Bruce asked, moving the debriefing along.

 

“ _Right._ ” Oracle typed a few more keys, then nodded at the group. “ _Whoever this mysterious buyer was, they then proceeded to assist Crane behind the scenes. They bought off several of Penguin’s goons to arrange for a covert smuggling of high-grade weaponry a few nights before the attack. They also managed to convince various criminal groups and gangs to join Scarecrow’s cause, several of which came directly from Black Mask and other powerful crime families. I believe the intention here was the throw the authorities off track and give themselves breathing room._ ”

 

“Sacrificial lambs,” Jason added. Despite only being on Earth for a few months, the eight Remnantians understood what that allusion referred to, and nodded in agreement.

 

“No honor among thieves, am I right?” Yang quipped, to which Oracle smiled and nodded before continuing.

 

“ _The bombs themselves were mostly made out of consumer goods,_ ” Oracle continued. “ _with two notable exceptions. The first was the Enigma operating system, which made it difficult for the GCPD to track and disarm. The second was the aerolizing chamber from GothCorp, which exponentially boosted the bombs’ strength. Had we not managed to disarm most of them, I do not doubt that the entire city would’ve been consumed._ ”

 

“We already know this,” Damian pointed out with a huff. “Were you able to figure out anything new?”

 

From her screen, Oracle looked at Damian then rolled her eyes. “ _Yes, my fair prince. Thanks to the evidence obtained at GothCorp, I can now safely determine that the backers of Scarecrow were the League of Shadows. The attack was yet another attempt by them to destroy Gotham City. I swear, each one gets more and more outlandish. Moving on, using the data the Titans nabbed from the_ White Portuguese _, I was able to make another discovery regarding the smuggled weapons._ ”

 

“Don’t leave us hanging,” Nora spoke up, crossing her arms and leaning back. “What did you find?”

 

“ _The ship they arrived on, the_ Red Son _, belonged to the same smuggling network as the_ White Portuguese. _As such, I think I can find out where the ship came from._ ”

 

The heroes digested the information, then one by one nodded in understanding.

 

“That’s great!” Ruby exclaimed. “We find out their base and we take ‘em out! Problem solved.”

 

“How soon can you narrow it down?” Weiss asked, realizing the difficulty of Oracle’s situation.

 

“ _A few days. Week, at most,_ ” Oracle explained.

 

“Please hurry. The last thing we need is for them to cut and run,” Bruce insisted.

 

“ _Will do, Batman._ ”

 

Bruce nodded at Barbara, then furrowed his brow. “What about Robinson Park?”

 

Oracle’s expression shifted into a frown. “ _It’s…not looking good. I wasn’t able to get enough data on my own, but from what I’ve been able to find, Poison Ivy’s involvement is suspected._ ”

 

A tense air filled the room. Teams RWBY and JNPR knew who Poison Ivy, or Pamela Isly, was. How she could control plants after a chemical accident, and how her body could exhume pheromones that allowed her to control people. She once managed to mind control Superman, even, so there was no telling what her limit was.

 

“If Pamela Isly’s on the loose, she has to have a reason,” Damian pointed out. “She’s an ecoterrorist, so likely something involving that.”

 

“I’ll inspect the industrial sector,” Bruce stated. “Get to the bottom of this. In the meantime, Oracle I want you to continue compiling all the evidence you can. Find out where the _Red Son_ came from.”

 

“ _Understood._ ”

 

“Everyone else,” Bruce turned to the young heroes, who wondered what he was going to say, “take the next few days off to train and recover. We have a lot more work ahead of us before this is all done, and I want you all at your best.”

 

The younger heroes looked at Bruce with slightly tilted eyebrows.

 

“Hold on, are you giving us a vacation?” Stephanie asked. Bruce turned to look at her, then shook his head.

 

“No,” he stated simply. Rather than elaborate further, he instead turned around and walked away, leaving his wards to themselves.

 

“…This is gonna suck, isn’t it?” Jaune quietly asked, and the sidekicks all nodded.

 

“Don’t worry,” Jason said, slapping Jaune’s shoulder as he and Tim started towards the elevator. “We’ll all suffer together.”

 

“Joy.”

 

~

 

Luckily for all of them, there was no training waiting for them that night. Instead, only soft, warm, freshly made beds courtesy of Alfred. Yang had practically slipped into unconsciousness as soon as her body hit the mattress. So fast, she didn’t even have time to pull the covers over her. Luckily, Ruby was able to do so for her, then she, too, fell asleep. Blake soon followed, leaving Weiss the last member of team RWBY to hit the hay after she ensured that the door into their room was locked. The last thing she needed was for another ‘visit’ from Bat-Cow.

 

She tested the door, jiggling the handle slightly to ensure that it was locked. When she was satisfied, she smiled and nodded to herself then quietly walked to her bed, slipping under the covers. It was only when her head hit the pillow that she finally noticed just how exhausted she was. Her eyes felt heavy, and a deep, unladylike yawn escaped from her lips. As her eyelids drifted shut, she pulled her covers up to her neck, then fell into a deep sleep and began to dream.

 

~

 

_Weiss found herself inside her family’s estate, more specifically in her old room. Stark white and faint blue walls surrounded her, consuming and constricting everything even as servants performed their daily tasks. For some strange reason, everything seemed to be bigger than what she remembered._

_She then heard her door’s handle jiggle, and Weiss shot her head towards it. Someone was trying to enter, but who? She looked around for Myrtenaster, but it was nowhere in sight. She tried reaching for her Aura, but nothing came up. Fear began to fill her mind, and in desperation she dived beneath a bed just as the door opened. She saw a pair of black dress shoes attached to a pair of dress pants, but she couldn’t identify the owner._

_“Now, where is she?” she heard a familiar man’s voice call out into the room. “I know she’s in here, so where, oh where, can she be?”_

_The shoes went to her closet and opened it. “Not in here.”_

_They then moved to her drawer. “Is she in here?” He opened it, then slowly closed it while saying, “Guess not. How peculiar, I could’ve sworn that a little girl was in here.”_

_Despite herself, Weiss couldn’t help but giggle at the man’s tone of voice. The man stopped in place, and Weiss covered her mouth with her hands in an attempt to block any other sounds from escaping._

_“Now, what was that? Is it a giggle? From a young, mischievous girl?_ ” _the man asked aloud as he walked around the room, slowly drifting closer to the bed. When he finally reached the bed, he stopped. She could practically tough his feet, now, but she didn’t dare to do so less he catch her. She heard muffled sounds as the sheets were rummaged through, then the man sighed loudly._

_“Guess I was just hearing things. Obviously, Weiss isn’t in here. I’ll just check another room,” he declared while moving towards the door. Internally, Weiss cheered. Why shouldn’t she? She had managed to successfully hide from him, after all. For a little girl like herself, that was an amazing accomplishment._

_That pride dissipated as she felt a tug on her feet, and with a slight shriek she felt herself being pulled out from under the bed and out into the open. She looked up to see a moustached face gleefully looking down on her, shaking his head. Weiss stared at him for a moment in defiance, then her expression broke and she giggled._

_“Klein! You found me!” Weiss declared as Klein Sieben, her family’s faithful and loyal butler, chuckled to himself and helped Weiss to her feet._

_“You certainly made it very difficult for me, my little snowflake,” Klein declared, then placed his hands on his hips and leaned forward. “Now, today is a very special day, but for the life of me I can’t remember why. Do you remember?”_

_“Yes, silly!” Young Weiss decreed while holding up ten fingers. “It’s my birthday!”_

_“That’s right, it is your birthday!” Klein said. “How could I have forgotten?”_

_“Because you’re dopey!”_

_“Ah, that explains it,” Klein replied while offering Weiss her hand. “Now, come along. Your mother and father are preparing a party downstairs, with a great, big cake and a lot of presents!”_

_“Really?” Weiss’ eyes sparkled. “Will Winter be there?”_

_“Of course, she will, my little snowflake,” Klein clarified, then took Weiss’ tiny hand into his own. Weiss happily held on tight, then together they walked towards the door. Weiss could already hear the party from outside, filled with laughter and the clattering of wine glasses. But, when the door was fully opened, she wasn’t greeted by a party or even a hallway. Instead, it was nothing more than bright, white light that consumed everything._

_The voices didn’t stop, though, even if Weiss suddenly wished that they did._

_“Just say it! Do you love me or not?!”_

_“You want to know the truth? Fine. I don’t love you. I only married you for the Schnee name.”_

_“Winter, you get back here, now!”_

_“I’m enrolling in Atlas Academy, and there’s nothing you can do to stop me!”_

_“If you think that running off will make the Schnee name stronger, then you’re a bigger fool than your grandfather!”_

_“Klein, where’s mother?”_

_“She’s…in the gardens, again. I’m sorry, Weiss. I…don’t think anyone is coming.”_

_“…That’s unfortunate.”_

_“Damn those White Fang terrorists! An entire train filled with Dust, gone in a single night. That shipment was worth millions of lien, and they stole it for what? Their ‘cause?’”_

_“Father, what about the crew? Were any harmed?”_

_“A few injuries, but nothing we can’t replace. I see the look in your eyes, Weiss, but understand that we and our family have been at war with these animals for years. There’s no negotiating with them, and you’d do well to remember that.”_

_“Weiss, as heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, I must insist that you reconsider your desire to enroll at Beacon Academy.”_

_“My mind is made up, father. I’ve already submitted the application papers, and I’ve been accepted.”_

_“Grrgh, fine. If you’re so insistent in following your sister’s footsteps, I will allow you to go. On one condition. I have a little test for you, daughter. Pass, and you’re free to go and join Beacon Academy as heiress with my complete and unyielding support. If you fail, you’re not leaving Atlas. I couldn’t bear to see you getting hurt. The world out there’s a dangerous place, and I’m not certain you’re ready.”_

_“I’m_ more _than ready.”_

_The light finally subsided, but Weiss no longer found herself in the Schnee Family Manor. Instead, she found herself in a war-torn Beacon Academy. Students, soldiers, and huntsmen battled against an unending robotic horde. Bullets and rockets met plasma bolts, and fighter aircraft from both sides battled for supremacy overhead._

_“Weiss, come on!” she heard someone shout over the chaos. Weiss was in a daze, her ears ringing for some reason. A smoky crater was next to her, indicative of an explosion, but she couldn’t remember what had happened. When another plasma ball shot past her head, however, Weiss snapped herself out of her daze and dove for cover. More plasma fire streamed by her previous location, and she looked around the battlefield for her weapon._

_To her dismay, the apparent explosion had knocked it away into an open clearing. Plasma and bullets streamed by near it, making any attempts at retrieval a dangerous proposition, at best. Yet, still she crawled along her belly towards it, ignoring the weapons fire that shot past her body and only missing her by mere inches. Occasionally, she could even feel the scorching heat of the plasma, but she grit her teeth and pressed onward._

_Just when she finally reached her weapon, however, she felt a kick on her side that sent her flying away. She landed against a chunk of rubble, and she could only watch as a Brainiac Drone raised its hand towards her head._

_“Keep away from her!” the voice from before commanded just as a tall woman with white hair sliced the drone apart. Surrounding drones raised their weapons at her, only for Winter to summon a flock of small Nevermores that tore them apart, leaving the two Schnee women breathing room._

_“Are you hurt?” Winter asked as she helped Weiss to her feet._

_“No, I’m good,” Weiss insisted, slightly wobbling while holding her hand to her head. A warm sensation was traveling down it, and she quickly saw the red trickle of blood running across her pale yet dirtied skin._

_Winter was clearly unconvinced, but another explosion redirected her attention. Weiss saw it as well, then steeled her face and picked up her fallen weapon._

_“If you think you can make me leave, you’re sorely mistaken,” Weiss told her sister with no room for any argument. Winter looked at her sister for a moment, then a proud smirk crossed her lips._

_A loud crash filled the air as more drones rushed towards them. They both looked at the advancing horde, and with a wordless yell, they charged forward with their blades outstretched, a gleaming-white snowflake forming behind each of them. Swords danced, fire and ice shot over everything in sight, and mounds of twisted metal grew higher and higher with each fallen drone. Weiss was fighting back to back with her sister, and despite the situation that caused it, Weiss couldn’t help but feel exhilarated. Like she was on top of the world, invincible to all that opposed her._

_Reality then crushed those dreams as a large explosion tossed her and Winter off their feet, scattering them apart and breaking both their Aura’s. Weiss landed belly first, and felt an unending exhaustion consume her. She then felt a strange object poke her side, and slowly turned her head to see the Mother Box clutched in her arm. It was glowing and shaking now, and with wide eyes she realized what was about to happen. Weiss looked towards Winter, who was unmoving even as the horde of robots advanced upon her._

_“NO!” Weiss grunted out as she clawed her way forward, bringing the Mother Box with her even as it shook harder and glowed brighter. “Stay…away…from…her!”_

_To her surprise, the drones did stop. For a moment, part of Weiss thought that she had won, only for the drones to part ways as Brainiac himself strode towards her and her sister. He looked at both, almost as though he was appraising them, then noticed the Mother Box clutched to Weiss’ side. His eyes widened but soon returned to their expressionless gaze._

_“Take the elder,” Brainiac ordered his drones. “She’ll be enough for study.”_

_The drones wordlessly did as instructed, lifting and binding Winter’s unconscious body for transport. Weiss screamed at them to stop, but found no words escaping. She tried to move forward, but her body wouldn’t let her. Instead, she could only watch in horror as Winter was taken away into Brainiac’s ship, and just as the Boom Tube was opened and sucked her in, Brainiac’s spoke directly towards her._

_“How…disappointing,” Brainiac stated, his voice a horrific mixture of his own and her father’s. Then, everything went white._

“No!” Weiss gasped as she shot upward, clutching her bedsheets close to her chest. Her body was covered in a cold sweat, her heart pounding, and her breathing erratic. In a clear panic, Weiss shot her head around the room, trying to find any threats. She found none, only seeing their room inside Wayne Manor along with her sleeping teammates. Slowly, Weiss’ breathing returned to normal, and she hung her head and closed her eyes.

 

“…Dammit,” she muttered to herself, feeling tears form on the edge of her eyes. She wiped them away on the sleeve of her pajamas, then looked back up at the rest of the room. Most of the others were sleeping soundly, or in Yang’s case snoring loudly, but to her alarm she saw that Ruby was mumbling to herself in her sleep. With sympathetic eyes, Weiss quietly got out of her bed and walked over to Ruby, where she softly ran her hand through her partner’s hair. The action seemed to sooth the young sixteen-year old as she stilled into a peaceful slumber.

 

Weiss sighed in relief, then stood back up and looked at her bed. She immediately dismissed going back to sleeping, knowing that after her latest nightmare, it would be a futile effort. Besides, the clock on their alarm said it was nearly six o’clock, and they’d be getting up in an hour for training, anyway. So instead, Weiss quietly exited the room and made her way towards the main hall. All of the lights were off, leaving Wayne Manor in complete darkness, but Weiss didn’t’ mind. It felt soothing, more than anything.

 

When she finally got to the main hall, she looked up at the various decorations and paintings that lined the walls. Sets of medieval armor, weapons, and shields emblazoned with the Wayne family crest were abundant, as were decades-old lamps, candelabras, clocks, and more. The more she looked, the more she felt that this house was lived in, and she took in the rustic smell of it all.

 

“Miss Schnee?” she heard a voice call out to her. With a start, Weiss whipped around to see Alfred looking towards her in concern, a lit candlestick in his hand.

 

“Oh, hello Alfred,” Weiss greeted the butler. “I apologize if I disturbed you.”

 

“Not at all, Miss Schnee,” Alfred insisted, then took a glance at the clock. “However, I can’t help but notice you’re up so early. Is everything alright?”

 

Weiss looked at him, wondering how to respond. Her pride screamed at her to insist that everything was perfectly fine, that how dare he think otherwise, but the concerned expression on Alfred’s face quickly stamped those prideful thoughts to the ground. Instead, she felt a deep sigh escape her lips, and she closed her eyes and looked away while rubbing her arm.

 

“I…couldn’t sleep,” she admitted. Alfred seemed to understand immediately and nodded slowly. His previous task all but forgotten, Alfred moved towards the young girl to keep her company, which Weiss clearly appreciated.

 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Alfred offered. “I may not be a licensed therapist, but I’ve been told I’m a good listener with good advice, on occasion.”

 

Weiss couldn’t help but snort at Alfred’s lackadaisical admission, then looked away once again. Fear that he had overstepped his bounds crossed Alfred’s heart, but before he could apologize, Weiss started to speak.

 

“I’m not the only child of the Schnee family,” Weiss softly said, which Alfred listened to intensely. “I wasn’t even the first. No, I was the second child of the _illustrious_ Jacques Schnee. The second of three, actually.”

 

“Who were they?” Alfred asked gently.

 

“My older sister, Winter, and my younger brother, Whitley. Winter was born a few years before me and was the original heir, and Whitely was a few years after me. But, when Winter grew older, she ran off to enroll in Atlas Academy and become a huntress, prompting my father to cut her off and name me heir to his fortune.” Weiss chuckled harshly. “He had tried to turn Winter into an extension of himself, morals and all, but she wasn’t having it. She joined Atlas to get away from it all, and so he tried to do the same to me. Whitley, on the other hand, took after my father extremely well.”

 

“What’s your father like?” Alfred asked while starting a fire in the fireplace, then sitting down on a chair while Weiss sat across from him.

 

“The closest description I can offer is ‘Lex Luthor-lite,’” Weiss stated. Alfred winced, immediately understanding what Weiss was saying, and she nodded back. “He took over the Schnee Dust Company after my grandfather, Nicholas, died. Under his direction, the SDC grew to become the largest company on Remnant, but in doing so employed morally questionable business tactics. He was completely and utterly relentless, driving smaller Dust companies out of business even if they weren’t realistically a threat to him. My father exploited the underprivileged of Mantle and other kingdoms to work in his mines, which was a highly dangerous occupation that often resulted in injuries. Both accidental and…deliberate. The Faunus were frequent victims, which led to the White Fang declaring war on my family. Many people died, some of which I knew, all so he could get another lien.”

 

Alfred frowned. “He sounds like a vile man,” he noted, and Weiss nodded.

 

“He is.” Weiss then looked into the fire, and her frown into a scowl. “What’s worse is that he isn’t even a Schnee. His real name is Jacques Gelé, and he only married my mother for the Schnee family name. Told her herself on my tenth birthday, in fact. My mother couldn’t cope, so she picked up a wine bottle. Then another, and another, and by the time I left for Beacon, I hardly ever saw her outside of the gardens without a glass of wine in hand.”

 

Weiss clenched her fists, part of her pajamas being scrunched up on her lap. “My father destroyed my family. He took the Schnee family as his own, then corrupted it. Twisted it into a name that is reviled when it used to be respected. Honored, even. I became a huntress to try and win at least some of that respect for my family back, to prove to the world that Jacques Schnee isn’t what makes a Schnee a Schnee.”

 

Weiss sighed and hung her head. “But I suppose I was really just trying to get away from him. In the end, it doesn’t really matter. Remnant’s gone. For all I know, I could be the last Schnee.”

 

“You don’t know that for certain,” Alfred offered, but Weiss shook her head.

 

“Brainiac was curious about my family’s Semblance,” Weiss revealed, forming a small glyph in the palm of her hand in emphasis. “I can’t say I blame him. My family’s Semblance is remarkable. He was going to study it through me, but now that I’m out of his reach, he has three other Schnee’s to test on. One whose mastery of it surpasses my own, in fact.”

 

Suddenly, it all seemed to click into place. Weiss wasn’t worried about her father, her brother, or even her mother. As morbid as it seemed, Weiss was truly only fearful for her sister’s safety. As he pondered what Weiss’ feelings meant, he saw a sparkling tear drip down Weiss’ face. She was crying now, holding her body close.

 

“I left her to that monster,” she wept, and Alfred felt his heart break. Silently, Alfred rose from his chair and sat back down next to Weiss, offering any form of comfort he could give.

 

“Weiss,” he began, “you did no such thing. What happened to your family is not your fault. I have only known you for a short time, but I can already see how courageous, dedicated, and strong you are. If your sister is anything like you, she’ll persist against anything Brainiac can throw at her, just as you did. Even then, the Schnee family lives on through you. You can make it mean whatever you so desire, and nothing your father can do could ever change that.”

 

Weiss looked at Alfred, tears burning in her eyes, and saw his warm smile. She sniffled, then slowly felt a smile grace her lips. She wiped the tears and snot from her face, then smiled more brightly.

 

“Thank you for listening, Alfred,” Weiss said, her eyes still red from the tears. “Sorry if I disturbed you.”

 

“You did no such thing, Weiss,” Alfred countered. “I am more than happy to lend an ear, now or in the future. All you need to do is ask.”

 

Weiss smiled again. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

 

Alfred nodded, then stood up off the chair. He looked down the hallway he was previously working in, wondered how to proceed next, then felt an idea pop into his head. With a warm smile, he looked back down at Weiss, who met his gaze in slight confusion.

 

“You know,” Alfred began, “I’ve always found that, after an emotionally trying time, a warm batch of cookies soothes the soul. Would you care to help make me some?”

 

Weiss stared into Alfred’s warm gaze, then smiled and stood up. “I’d love to.”

 

~

 

Ruby awoke with a groan as their alarm clock sounded off. She rolled to the side and glared lightly at it. The alarm read seven o’clock, and with a yawning grumble she turned it off then sat upright.

 

“Time to get up,” Ruby drowsily ordered, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

 

“I don’t wanna,” Yang complained, her body feeling sore. “Five more minutes…”

 

“No, Yang,” Ruby chastised, then yawned and stretched her arms. She blinked a few times, then looked around the room to see Blake and Yang reluctantly getting out of bed. For whatever reason, however, Weiss was already gone. Both of her teammates noticed this development, and they all frowned slightly. Ruby, Blake, and Yang looked at each other knowingly then, at a much quicker pace than before, moved out of the room and headed towards the dining room. Team JNPR was already ahead of them, their bodies slowly trudging themselves forward while their heads hung low. Except for Nora, however, who was walking backwards while looking at Jaune and Pyrrha with a disappointed expression.

 

“I cannot _believe_ you two would keep this from me!” Nora chastised as Team RWBY passed by, causing them to slow down as curiosity filled them.

 

“We only decided on it last night,” Pyrrha lightly protested.

 

“Yeah,” Jaune added. “Besides, it’s just a date. It’s not that big a deal.”

 

“Not a big deal? Not a big deal?! Two of my best friends, my sister in arms and my fearless leader, have finally decided to go on a date, after she herself has been wanting it for _months_ , and you say, ‘it’s not a big deal!’” Nora sounded offended, not noticing RWBY having already stopped in their tracks and whirling around to look at the two embarrassed teammates in astonishment. Ren, for his part, glanced at the three women and gave an acknowledging nod, telling them this had been going on for some time.

 

“Worst of all, you didn’t even tell me until this morning! The nerve of you people,” Nora finished, telling everyone exactly why she was so offended in the first place.

 

“Honestly, Nora, it’s not. It’s just one date to see if it works,” Pyrrha insisted, a slight blush crossing her face.

 

“Besides, last night was hectic,” Ren reminded his partner. “There wasn’t any time to say anything.”

 

“I know, but still!” Nora huffed and crossed her arms, lightly glaring at Jaune and Pyrrha. They looked at Nora then at each other before silently coming to an agreement.

 

“Nora, would you and Ren like to come with us?” Pyrrha offered. Nora waited for a moment, her arms still crossed and a small frown furrowing her face.

 

“…Like a double date?” Nora asked neutrally.

 

“Yes, Nora. Like a double date,” Jaune clarified. Almost as though a switch was pulled, Nora reverted back to her normal, excitable self, and she embraced Jaune and Pyrrha with a large grin.

 

“Yes! This! Is! Happening!” Nora cheered, then forcibly pulled the two further down the hall forcibly and past a stunned team RWBY. “Hi, guys!”

 

Before Ruby, Blake, or Yang could respond, Nora was already gone, leaving only Ren behind with them. They blinked their eyes, then turned their heads towards the Verdant Lotus. Without even needing to say anything, Ren already knew what they were wondering about.

 

“Jaune and Pyrrha decided to go on a date last night,” Ren explained. “Just one, to see if it works out. Nora took offense to not being notified immediately.”

 

The three girls looked at Ren for a moment and blinked. One by one, they turned their heads towards the direction Nora had gone, then slowly smiled warmly.

 

“Good for them,” Yang declared, nodding to herself. “I hope it works out.”

 

“Same,” Blake added. Jaune and Pyrrha were two of her closest friends, and she honestly wished them the best. When the Faunus looked at Ruby, she laughed upon seeing the stars twinkling in her silver eyes. Even after all that’s happened to them, Ruby was still a sucker for cheesy romance.

 

Their curiosities satisfied, the four Remnantians continued their journey towards the dining room. As they drew closer, the smell of crackling bacon and fresh eggs filled their nostrils, making their stomachs growl at the same time. They quickened their pace, soon finding themselves at the dining room door. Alfred was waiting for them and nodded in acknowledgement as he opened the door.

 

“Young Masters,” he greeted the Remnantians, who each smiled at the kind butler as they passed him by.

 

“Hey, Al!” Yang replied. Ren and Blake said nothing other than nod back, while Ruby stayed behind to speak with the butler further.

 

“Alfred, did you see-?” Ruby began, but Alfred cut her off.

 

“Weiss? Yes, actually,” Alfred explained, his expression turning serious. Ruby’s did as well, and at once Alfred knew he could trust Ruby with the contents of his talk with Weiss.

 

“How bad was it?” Ruby quietly asked after Alfred gently closed the dining room door.

 

“I’m afraid I don’t have enough experience with her to fully make that distinction,” Alfred explained with a sigh, rubbing his hand across his balding head. “But she was crying at one point. I’d like to think I helped, but to be honest, I don’t if I did enough.”

 

Ruby looked at the butler, then smiled in understanding. “You did more than enough, Alfred. Thank you for being there for her.”

 

Alfred looked down on Ruby, then smiled back. “Of course. Happy to be of assistance, Miss Rose. Now, your breakfast awaits.”

 

Ruby smiled warmly as Alfred opened the door for her, allowing Ruby entry into the lively dining room. There she saw the rest of her team chatting with team JNPR along with the other occupants of Wayne Manor, with the lone exception of Bruce himself. The primary discussion was about the upcoming double-date for team JNPR along with further details about their missions from the night before. Ruby, however, focused on Weiss, who was sitting by her friends with a warm smile on her face. Her scroll was in hand, reading an article from the Daily Planet that Ruby couldn’t quite make out. Weiss then noticed Ruby’s attention was on her, and the two partners made eye contact. They smiled and nodded at each other, then Ruby grabbed a plate, filled it with food and freshly made cookies, and made her way over to Weiss to sit by her side.

 

“Hey,” Ruby greeted as she shoveled some pancakes into her mouth, causing Weiss to roll her eyes affectionately.

 

“Don’t chew with your mouth open,” the heiress chastised, and Ruby quickly swallowed, grinned, and rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.

 

~

 

“Ahh! That was so good! You really know how to make a good breakfast, Al!” Yang declared as the young huntress led the other heroes out into the main foyer, her arms crossed behind her head.

 

“Why, thank you, Miss Xiao Long,” Alfred replied with a smile. “Although, I must be honest that Miss Schnee helped me with the eggs. She did quite well, in my opinion.”

 

Weiss smiled at the compliment, then saw the look on Yang’s face. The Golden Dragon prepared to say something, and Weiss was about to cut her off, when they heard a startled gasp come from the top of the main stairs. Everyone’s attention shot towards it, where to their bewilderment they saw an equally surprised Selina Kyle wearing nothing but a bathrobe looking down on them with wide eyes.

 

“…Selina?” Yang called out, the gears in her head locking up.

 

“…Hey,” Selina hesitantly replied. “I did _not_ know you lived here.”

 

“…Yeah, we do,” Blake replied, slowly putting the pieces together.

 

“Why is Catwoman here?” Weiss asked, knowing who Selina Kyle was but not understanding why she was in Wayne Manor. More importantly, she didn’t understand why the rest of the Bat-family let out a collective sigh, Damian frowning deeply while the others merely shook their heads.

 

Then Bruce entered the room in a similar state of dress as Catwoman, and everything fell into place.

 

“No,” Jaune gasped. “Isn’t she-? But you’re a-? What?!”

 

“Batman’s…dating Catwoman?” Nora softly spoke, her mind racing at a mile-a-minute. Weiss and Pyrrha felt a red-hot blush consume their faces, while Yang had already begun to laugh.

 

“Have…have you no shame?” Weiss demanded towards Bruce, who in departure from his normal, stoic expression, looked slightly embarrassed.

 

“No, no he does not,” Damian complained, crossing his arms while Alfred walked up the stairs towards Bruce and Selina.

 

“Miss Kyle, a pleasure to see you again,” Alfred said, and the Catwoman smiled warmly.

 

“Hello, Alfred. Sorry for barging in,” Selina apologized. Whether or not she was sincere, the children didn’t know, but Alfred took it in stride.

 

“Not at all. Come, let’s get you decent,” Alfred stated firmly, leaving no room for argument. Selina could only meekly nod, and together the butler and the thief disappeared down a hall. Bruce was left behind, and slowly turned to face the rest of his wards. Weiss and Damian were frowning in equal measure, tapping their feet and crossing their arms. Ruby, Pyrrha, and Blake were blushing profusely, Jaune was looking around with wide eyes trying to find an explanation, while Yang was trying her best to stifle her laughter. Only Ren wasn’t showing any external reaction, but Bruce could see he was shocked. The rest were all resigned, while Nora turned her head towards where Catwoman had disappeared. She then looked back at Bruce, pursed her lips in thought, then nodded.

 

“Nice,” she firmly declared, and Yang felt the dams break as hysterical laughter filled the air.

 

~

 

“So, how long has _this_ been going on?” Weiss demanded to know as Bruce, now adequately dressed, was interrogated in the dining room by the rest of the vigilantes. Selina had already escaped the Manor out a window, but not before Alfred had thoroughly checked to make sure she hadn’t made off with a trinket or two.

 

“Oh, it’s been on and off,” Jason replied before Bruce could answer. “It comes and goes, really. Sometimes they’re enemies, sometimes they’re allies. Sometimes, they wind up in bed together. So, you know, typical couple stuff.”

 

“A typical couple doesn’t usually involve both parties being on opposite sides of the law,” Weiss pointed out.

 

“…Technically, aren’t all superheroes outside the law?” Ruby pointed out meekly, still trying to wrap her head around everything.

 

“Not anymore, and you’re missing the point,” Weiss replied, turning her attention back towards the Dark Knight. “Well? What do you have to say for yourself?”

 

Bruce stayed silent, slowly turning his gaze across all of the assembled young heroes before them, then centered his attention on Weiss.

 

“My relationship with Selina is…complicated,” he finally revealed, and Weiss slapped her forehead.

 

“’Complicated’ is an understatement,” Damian chastised through a frown. “Honestly, father, your taste in women leaves much to be desired.”

 

Amused more than anything, Bruce raised his eyebrow. “Really? Care to elaborate on that?”

 

Damian held up a finger. “Your past choices in romantic liaisons have been poor, with a baffling tendency for them to be enemies of ours in some way or another.”

 

“He has a point,” Jason agreed, and Damian nodded.

 

“Look, I get it. This never-ending mission of ours is lonely, and if she provides some carnal release, then so be it. Better her than my mother, in any case,” Damian continued, causing Yang to give a choking snort while the others shot their heads towards him. “All I ask is that you be smart about it. Furthermore, I hope you used protection last night. I do not want a little brother or sister running around.”

 

Bruce paused and looked at his son. “…Thank you, Damian.” He then closed his eyes and breathed deeply. After a moment, Bruce opened them again, seeing that everyone’s attention was focused back on him. Another moment paused, allowing everyone to collect their thoughts, then he began to speak.

 

“Look, there are many…facets to Selina. She’s a criminal, yes, but not a bad person. When I said our relationship is complicated, I meant it. That’s the most accurate way I can describe her.”

 

Blake and Yang thought back to when they met the Catwoman last night. They remembered how the thief clearly used them as a distraction to steal whatever she wanted from the Penguin, yet when they were in danger, she revealed herself to help them. The more they thought about it, perhaps ‘complicated’ truly was the best way to describe her. Weiss remained unconvinced, however, and rolled her eyes alongside Damian. Ruby, meanwhile, finally came to a conclusion about the situation and looked at Bruce with stars in her eyes. Yang couldn’t help but smile at her sister’s expression, then Bruce rose to his feet.

 

“Now, if you’re all done talking about my romantic life—" Bruce began.

 

“I’m not!” Nora interrupted, but Bruce ignored her.

 

“Let’s get started on today’s training. I’ve already reviewed the footage from last night and have identified areas of improvement for all of you.”

 

At once, the expressions on the young heroes shifted into complete and utter seriousness. They looked at each other then back at Bruce. Then, all at once, they nodded.

 

~

 

Sweat trickled down Blake’s brow as she focused intensely on the task before her. In one hand was a pair of scissors, the other holding tweezers. An analog clock was ticking down, adding to the tension as she shot her eyes between multiple wires of varying colors. Weiss was next to her, equally serious as she held her scroll in hand.

 

“Cut the red when I say so,” Weiss ordered. Blake immediately placed the scissors on the wire in question, nodding towards Weiss to continue.

 

“Three…two…one,” Weiss counted down. “Cut.”

 

Blake did as instructed, and when nothing happened the two women continued to the next step.

 

“Green in three…two…one…cut.”

 

Again, Blake cut the wire. Her feline ears twitched as she clock continued to tick down, and she knew they didn’t have much time. Blake shot her eyes towards Weiss, silently pleading for her to go faster, and the former heiress silently complied.

 

“Cut the blue,” Weiss ordered. Blake went to do so, only to immediately notice a problem.

 

“Which one? There’s three?” Blake asked. Indeed, there were three blue wires outstretched before her. One was on the top of the switchboard, intertangled with a yellow. Another was by itself in the middle, and the last was on the bottom intersecting with an orange. Weiss studied the schematic intensely, then gestured towards the top. Trusting her teammate, Blake gently grabbed the wire in question and placed the blades of her scissors to it.

 

“Three,” Weiss began to count down, hearing the clock approach the zero-mark, “two…one…cut.”

 

Blake immediately cut the wire, and then heard the clock cease. The two huntresses waited for a moment, then sighed in relief.

 

“Whew. Good job, Blake. We—” Weiss began, only to suddenly be engulfed by confetti as the dummy bomb ‘exploded’. Their faces were covered completely, strands of multicolored paper sticking to their hair and fluttering through the air. Weiss closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, then began to pull the confetti off of her.

 

“We _didn’t_ disarm the bomb. Joy,” Weiss corrected herself as she and Blake backed away from the training station. She pulled out her scroll once again, flipping through the schematics to determine where she went wrong. When she found it, she sighed and rubbed her forehead.

 

“I confused the blue with the yellow,” she groaned, then felt a hand clasp her shoulder. Weiss looked up to see Stephanie giving her an accepting smile.

 

“Hey, don’t worry about it. We’ve all made mistakes,” she explained. “Better here than out there.”

 

“I know, but it’s still frustrating,” Weiss replied, crossing her arms as Tim reset the bomb for the next participants.

 

“Bomb defusal’s difficult,” Stephanie pointed out, leaning back against a wall before wincing and forcing herself off. Blake and Weiss looked at her in concern, but the girl waved them off. “I’m fine, just a little sore.”

 

“How long will you and Tim be out of action?” Blake asked.

 

“Couple weeks,” Stephanie revealed. “League medical technology can only do so much. In the meantime, Tim and I will be assisting in the background with Oracle.”

 

“That’s good,” Weiss replied with a smile, then looked back at the dummy bomb as Ren and Nora made their way towards it. Tim was walking towards them in turn, standing next to Stephanie and giving Ren and Nora the signal to start.

 

“Say,” Tim began as they watched the bomb defusal, “did Beacon have any bomb defusal classes?”

 

“It was an upper-year elective, I believe, and a relatively new one at that,” Weiss explained. “You have to understand, though, that Beacon was mostly meant to train students on how to fight the Grimm. Counter-terrorism wasn’t our main focus.”

 

“Which left us unprepared when we started getting into conflict with Roman Torchwick and the White Fang,” Blake finished with a frown. Weiss couldn’t find it within herself to argue against it, despite what her pride would love to argue. At the same time, she couldn’t help but continue that train of thought further. After spending over two months on Earth, studying its vast history, she had come to a grim conclusion: Remnant had spent so much time trying to survive against the Grimm that, when another foe made himself known, they were powerless to defend themselves. Not that she could truly blame themselves, of course. The Grimm were civilization killers and trying to ignore them over a threat that may or may not have existed from beyond the stars was, up until Remnant’s final days, a stupid decision.

 

Stephanie and Tim looked at Weiss and Blake in concern, pursing their lips. They hadn’t meant for the conversation to shift this way, and both knew they had to do something to get their minds off of it. An idea sprung into Stephanie’s head, and then looked at Weiss intently.

 

“You know, I just realized something,” Stephanie pointed out.

 

“Realized what?” Blake asked, tilting her head towards Stephanie Brown in slight confusion.

 

“You guys have been with us for over a week now, yet you haven’t truly explored Gotham,” Stephanie pointed out. Weiss narrowed her eyes and prepared to retort, but Stephanie cut her off. “I meant in the day, when it’s not as much of a crime-ridden cesspool.”

 

Weiss swallowed her retort, then nodded. “That’s true. I have wondered if Gotham is better under daylight.”

 

“It’s no Metropolis,” Tim acquiesced, “but it’s still pretty nice. Plenty of shops, restaurants, attractions, and much more. We have at least a week before Babs figures out everything, and there’s no need to stay cooped up in the Batcave the entire time.”

 

“It would be nice to get out more,” Blake agreed. “We’ll have to run it by the others, but I wouldn’t mind travelling around Gotham City for a few hours.”

 

“Splendid!” Stephanie exclaimed with a clap of her hands, then winced as the bruises on her body made themselves known again. “Uggh, obviously Tim and I can’t go with you, but I’m certain that one of the others could show you around town. I’ll ask them for ya.”

 

Weiss and Blake smiled at Stephanie’s generosity, then nodded.

 

“Thank you, Stephanie. It’s much appreciated,” Blake said, but Stephanie waved her off.

 

“Nah, don’t worry about it. You guys are friends, and friends don’t let friends stay locked up in a dark cave all day,” Stephanie joked, and the others laughed alongside her. They then heard a click and turned towards Nora and Ren to see a jubilant Pink Lightning standing victoriously over the now-defused bomb.

 

“Yes!” Nora proclaimed while pointing both of her fingers towards Weiss and Blake. “We win! In your face!”

 

“How?!” Weiss shouted, only for Nora to wildly grin and place her hands on her hips.

 

“Why _wouldn’t_ I learn how to disarm a time bomb? Who knows when you might get stuck with a bomb that’s about to explode, and if you don’t already know how to disarm one, then it’ll be too late for you to learn before going boom! You’d have to be craaazy to not be prepared for that!” Nora declared, her ever-present smile plastered across her face. Weiss paused for a moment, then reluctantly nodded in acceptance. Stephanie and Tim lightly smiled and shook their heads in bemusement, then went to reset the bomb for the next participants.

 

“Ruby, Yang. You’re up.”

 

~

 

_November 9 th, 3:00 PM_

_Batcave, Gotham City_

“Easy, easy,” Tim Drake insisted in the copilot’s seat of the flight simulator. Yang was sitting next to him, her face scrunched in concentration as she maneuvered her ‘aircraft’ through a simulation of Gotham’s tight airspace. She was flying the Batwing through the gaps between buildings, taking it slow and steady so that she didn’t accidentally fly into one.

 

“Okay,” Tim said, seeing that Yang was getting the hang of it thus far, “now try to speed up a bit.”

 

“’Kay,” Yang replied, slowly increasing the craft’s thrust. She made sure not to go too fast. The last time she did that, she lost control almost instantly and plowed straight into the simulated Wayne Enterprises building. She did not want a repeat of that instance, especially after the stern talking to she got from Bruce afterwards. The only consolation was that the crash happened inside the simulator, so the only thing that got hurt was her pride. Which still sucked, in the blonde’s opinion, but it was better than the alternative.

 

The buildings were whizzing past her now, Yang trying her best to dodge them. Occasionally, the wings would edge dangerously close to a building, but she was able to maneuver out of the way in time. As time went on, Yang found that she was growing more and more confident. A small grin began to make its way across her face, but she prevented herself from letting her confidence grow too far. That lesson had been beaten into her repeatedly over the past few months, sometimes quite literally, and she wasn’t about to let it fail her now.

 

“Alright, looking good so far,” Tim declared as the simulated Batwing neared Gotham Bay. “Right, let’s try to land the Batwing. Head for the Wayne Manor landing pad.”

 

“Will do,” Yang said as she gently turned the aircraft towards their destination. Wayne Manor was easy to find, and she quickly began circling around its back before arriving above the landing pad. She pressed a few buttons, and the Batwing began to hover in place above the Wayne family crest emblazoned onto the pad below.

 

“Easy, easy,” Tim cautioned as Yang slowly descended the Batwing. A few times she shifted the joystick too much, causing the aircraft to shake in response, but she was able to right herself almost immediately. As the ground grew closer and closer, Yang felt beads of sweat trickle down her brow, and she held her breath as the landing gears touched down onto the pad. She waited for a moment, her body tensed as though in expectation of some calamity, but none came.

 

“Huh,” Yang finally got out, “I landed it.”

 

“Good job, Yang,” Tim congratulated her as the simulator doors swung open. “Told ‘ya you could do it.”

 

Yang looked at the vigilante as he got out of the cockpit, then Yang smiled to herself and nodded. A sense of pride and accomplishment filled her heart, and unlike her earlier bout of overconfidence, she didn’t feel the need to stamp this one down. To be sure, she was nowhere near ready to actually pilot an aircraft. That wouldn’t be for a few more weeks or months of practice, at least, but with each step she took it felt as though she was getting closer and closer.

 

She took a deep breath and looked around the Batcave to see what everyone else was doing. She had been in the simulator for a few hours, and by now everyone had changed what they were doing. Jaune was practicing his swordplay with Damian, the young boy appearing to take enjoyment out of knocking Jaune to the floor while he himself took it in stride. Pyrrha was sparring against Cassandra, their spar on much more even footing with Pyrrha slightly edging it out. From the look on the Crimson Guardian’s face, she was having a blast. Yang could imagine why, after all it was the same look she had during her bout against Artemis of Bana-Mighdall. The girl loved a challenge.

 

Weiss, meanwhile, was experimenting on new materials to use with her Semblance. Vials of Firefly gel, Freeze Gas, and powdered Nth metal laid before her, as did samples of materials Yang didn’t recognize.  

 

“What ‘cha working on?” Yang asked Weiss as she made her way over.

 

“New materials for Myrtenaster’s blade,” Weiss answered, holding out a block of Nth Metal and a pale-white metal that Yang didn’t recognize. “After what happened to Crocea Mors, the last thing I want is for my weapon to break after stabbing something.”

 

“Yeah, that would suck,” Yang replied, shaking her head in sympathy. The boy was still working on a replacement, but from what she could see it was coming along pretty well. She couldn’t wait until it was finally finished. Same with Ruby’s replacement weapon, but both were pretty tight lipped about what was going into them.

 

“Precisely,” Weiss continued, holding up the two blocks in emphasis. “I was also curious about depleted promethium, but after doing a few tests, I think I’m going to stick with Nth Metal. Its anti-magical properties are more than sufficient for my needs, and I already have experience using it with my Semblance.”

 

“Glad to hear it,” Yang said with a smile. She then hummed and rubbed her chin. “Say, can I borrow some of that depleted promethium? I’ve been thinking of upgrades for Ember Celica.”

 

“Sure,” Weiss replied as she handed Yang the block of metal. “May I ask what your idea is?”

 

“A pair of punch-daggers,” Yang replied. “Had the idea after I _almost_ got eaten by a shark. Turns out, trying to punch something underwater while being thrashed around and drowning is extremely difficult. Who knew?”

 

“I can imagine.” Weiss shuddered. If she was being honest with herself, the thought of being eaten alive by a shark while drowning sounded terrifying, and she was glad Yang was able to walk away from that encounter in one piece. She then returned to her weapon, drawing out schematics on how best to apply the new material as Yang sat down next to her and did the same.

 

“By the way, where’s Ruby?” Yang asked while continuing to draw.

 

“Test track,” Weiss answered, not bothering to look at her teammate.

 

“Why?”

 

“Bruce’s teaching her to drive.”

 

Yang was about to inquire further when she heard a slight squeal of brakes. She shot her head towards the source, only to see nothing. A roar of an engine followed, only to be immediately silenced by another squeal. Slowly, Yang saw the Batmobile inch its way forward along the test track, an extremely nervous Ruby clutching the steering wheel with bone-white hands while a non-plussed Bruce sat in the passenger seat, giving her pointers.

 

“Yeah, it’s been like this for a while,” Weiss admitted as the Batmobile continued to inch away, soon disappearing behind a rock wall. Yang stared after it for a while, then chuckled to herself and turned back towards her weapon design.

 

~

 

_November 10 th, 8:00 AM_

 

Pyrrha watched as Jason and Jaune practiced their shooting in the Batcave’s target range. Her partner was only using a .22 rifle versus Jason’s boxy handgun, but overall, he was doing a decent job. For a beginner at least. Even if Jaune was only considering using a gun at this point, it was still good that Jason was insistent Jaune learn proper gun safety before moving forward on anything. She then turned her attention back towards Cassandra, who was crouching low to the ground in preparation for their spar. Both of them were unarmed, and Pyrrha crouched in preparation as well.

 

“Begin,” Bruce ordered, and at once Pyrrha and Cassandra raced towards each other. The Crimson Guardian threw a light punch towards the Batgirl’s head, but Cassandra perfectly read her movements before the punch was even thrown. She twirled to the side and dodged, reaching up to grab Pyrrha’s arm intending to hurl the champion away. But Pyrrha was expecting that, and as Cassandra flipped her, Pyrrha maneuvered her body so that she landed on her feet instead of her back, grabbed Cassandra’s body tightly, and flipped her to the ground in turn. Cassandra felt the air being knocked out of her lungs, then Pyrrha lifted her up and hurled her across the mat outside of the ring.

 

“Pyrrha wins by ring-out. Cassandra, you can’t rely on the same tricks for everyone. That’s why Pyrrha was able to anticipate your movements,” Bruce declared. Pyrrha nodded towards her newest mentor, then walked over to help Cassandra to her feet. The young girl grumpily muttered to herself, displeased with her performance, but otherwise held no ill-will towards Pyrrha.

 

“Hey, don’t worry about. You’ll probably win next time,” Pyrrha said, attempting to cheer Cassandra up. Given how their mutual win/loss record against each other was around 50/50, she was fairly confident what she was saying was the truth. Regardless, she looked forward towards their next match, as undoubtedly Cassandra would ten times as hard to put Pyrrha to the ground.

 

Pyrrha and Cassandra walked up to the podium next to Batman, watching as the next combatants, in this case Ruby and Blake, entered the ring. Bruce gave the signal, and at once Ruby and Blake charged towards each other and fell into a tightly-packed melee.

 

“Ruby’s overextending,” Bruce noted, which Pyrrha and Cassandra quickly picked up on.

 

“She’s getting better, though,” Pyrrha pointed out, and after a moment Bruce nodded in agreement.

 

“Still more work to be done,” he finished, falling back into a studious silence. The three fighters watched as Blake won their bout, then readied themselves again for the next round. As Bruce gave the signal, the two sparred once again, Blake clearly the better of the two but Ruby was showing her progress.

 

Despite her best attempts, however, her eyes drifted back towards Jaune. A nervous frown crossed her lips, and she had to force herself to look away.

 

“Is something wrong?” Bruce suddenly asked, startling Pyrrha who reacted with a slight jump.

 

“Uh, no. Nothing wrong,” Pyrrha insisted, but neither Bruce nor Cassandra were buying it.

 

“It’s about Jaune, isn’t it?” Bruce asked. Pyrrha moved to retort, then paused and sighed while hanging her head.

 

“…Yes,” she admitted, reluctantly. “I’m just a little nervous about our upcoming date.”

 

“Hmm,” Bruce wordlessly hummed, then turned his attention back towards the spar. Blake had won once again, and he seemed content with ending the subject there. Now that it was brought up, however, Pyrrha’s mind couldn’t shake it off. She pursed her lips, remembering their meeting with Catwoman just a few days before, and she began to realize that she was standing next to a person who apparently had considerable experience in this area.

 

“Bruce, can I ask you something, actually?” she asked. From the corner of his eye, Bruce looked at Pyrrha while keeping his attention primarily focused on the spar before him.

 

“Go ahead,” he replied, and Pyrrha nodded to herself.

 

“Can you…give me any advice for Jaune and I’s double-date? I have to admit, I’ve never actually been on one before,” Pyrrha admitted, a nervous smile on her face while rubbing the back of her head.

 

“Hmm,” Bruce hummed in response, furrowing his brow. “You really want my advice?”

 

“Yes, I mean…we all saw you with Catwoman the other day.” Pyrrha still couldn’t wrap her head fully around that development, even after several days to digest it. Ever since she arrived on Earth, she had honestly thought that he and Diana had a thing for each other. Did she read them wrong?

 

“I’m not sure you’ll like my advice,” Bruce admitted. Pyrrha paused, slightly frowning while wondering exactly what he meant by that. For a brief moment, she thought of taking back her question, but she shook her head.

 

“I would greatly appreciate any advice you can give,” Pyrrha firmly stated. Bruce looked at her, his eyes boring into her own, then looked back at the two sparring teammates. Pyrrha could feel that Bruce was about to give her what she wanted, and she wondered what, exactly, his advice would entail. Be herself? Have fun with it? Don’t rush things?

 

“Never date within the team,” Bruce declared, grinding Pyrrha’s thoughts to a halt. Out of all the things she expected to hear, _that_ wasn’t one of them.

 

“Uh, wha?” Pyrrha muttered, not fully understanding why this was the advice he chose to give. Had she misheard him, somehow? Bruce looked back at her, seeing her confusion, and began to speak again.

 

“My advice is to never date within the team,” he repeated, confirming that Pyrrha hadn’t misheard him.

 

“Wh…why?” Pyrrha asked, beginning to feel a little incensed. Bruce took her changing expression in, and calmly looked her in the eyes.

 

“Dating within the team is an inherently risky relationship, both between the two romantic partners and for the greater team dynamic,” he explained. “It can lead to emotional compromises, which in our line of work can lead to disaster.”

 

“Explain,” Pyrrha insisted, and Bruce nodded before proceeding to do so.

 

“Being superheroes requires us to place ourselves in high-risk environments where there is a significant chance of bodily harm. This environment necessitates that a hero is able to keep a calm, rational mind in order to minimize the danger, both to themselves and others. When working as a team, a strong team dynamic is crucial for this, as is each member of the team being able to take in the entire picture to best come up with a strategy.

 

“Adding a romantic relationship to that picture muddles it,” Bruce continued. “As humans, it is almost impossible to separate personal relationships from our line of work. Should an environment be too risky for a hero’s romantic partner, they very well may be less likely to send them into that area. Even if they are more than capable of handling themselves or if their presence is needed.”

 

“Are you saying that Jaune would try to coddle me if we started dating?” Pyrrha asked, feeling a little insulted, but Bruce shook his head.

 

“No, not at all. Jaune has a good head on his shoulders, and I’m confident that he’d make the right decision when needed.” Bruce paused. “What I’m concerned about is what happens when the danger proves to be too much.”

 

Pyrrha paused, narrowing her eyebrows while looking at the Dark Knight. “What do you mean?”

 

“You and Jaune are already partners,” Bruce explained. “The relationship you two have built between yourselves is extremely strong and powerful, and there is very little I could see that would tear you apart. I have no doubt that entering a romantic relationship would make that bond stronger.”

 

Bruce paused, then looked at Pyrrha with a serious expression, “What happens if that relationship is tragically cut short? How would Jaune react if you died, or vice versa?”

 

Pyrrha recoiled. Slowly, she began to realize where Bruce’s concern truly laid. He wasn’t concerned about their decision making, or even their ability to work cohesively as a team. He was concerned about how the other would react if one of them…died. It was a sobering thought. Pyrrha gulped, then looked back at Bruce.

 

“We would be destroyed,” Pyrrha realized, and Bruce nodded.

 

“Exactly,” Bruce somberly said. He looked away, hanging his head. “Romantic relationships are among the most intimate humans can make. They can make us stronger, but they can also tear us down just as easily. The loss of a partner, whether it be a close, personal friend or a lover, is among the most traumatic in human existence. Many heroes have suffered from this loss, and many don’t recover. Some do, but only after they pick up the pieces.”

 

Pyrrha paused, wondering where Bruce got this philosophy from, then she looked over to see Damian practicing his swordplay against wooden practice dummies. Suddenly, it all fell into place.

 

“You’re talking about Talia,” Pyrrha realized. Bruce said nothing, but that was all the answer she needed. Although she was Damian’s mother, Bruce didn’t like to talk about her all that much. Damian outright despised her, and from the uncomfortable looks everyone gave when her name was brought up, whatever Talia did ruined whatever chance of a true relationship that had been fostered between them. Pyrrha understood his words, now, but she still didn’t fully agree with him.

 

“What about Dick and Kori? Tim and Stephanie?” she pointed out. “They’re dating, and I don’t see anything wrong with their relationships.” Ren and Nora went unsaid, but even Bruce realized that nothing was going to prevent that from happening.

 

“And I gave them the exact same advice I gave you,” Bruce countered, looking at Pyrrha again. “They chose to take that risk, and I won’t stop them. I hope that everything works out between them and wish them the best. Should you and Jaune decide to take that step after your date, I will lend that same support. Ultimately, who you date is your decision, whether it be a partner, a civilian—”

 

“Or a criminal,” Pyrrha finished. Bruce paused while Cassandra chuckled, and despite himself, Bruce couldn’t help but slightly smirk.

 

“Or a criminal.” He looked at Pyrrha once again. “I meant no offense, Pyrrha. I honestly do hope that you and Jaune can make it work. All I ask is that, if it doesn’t, don’t let it destroy the strong bond you already have.”

 

Pyrrha looked into Bruce’s eyes, then nodded. “It won’t,” she declared, then walked away towards the sparring arena as Blake and Ruby finished. Cassandra walked alongside her, and she didn’t say a word. Her thoughts, however, drifted back towards Bruce’s words. For a moment, she worried, then shook them off. No matter what happened, she vowed, whether the date proved to be a one-off or turned into something more, Pyrrha knew that nothing would sever the bond she and Jaune had. Nothing was more important to her than that.

 

~

 

_November 11 th, 1:00 AM_

_Robinson Park, Gotham City_

Batman silently prowled Robinson Park, holding aloft a small, cylindrical device while keeping his senses peeled for any suspicious activity. A rebreather was masked over his face, preventing him from being contaminated by anything foul hanging in the air. His cowl’s HUD was linked to the device, showing him air quality as well as particle composition. Thus far, the air quality was standard for a park in the middle of an industrial city. Carbon dioxide, ozone, sulfur dioxide, and other standard polluting agents.

 

That and, of course, trace amounts of plant-based pheromones that are known to interfere with the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that controlled lust and attraction.

 

‘ _Poison Ivy,_ ’ Batman thought to himself. The pheromones were mostly faded and null, the quantities still hanging about not enough to affect to affect anyone, but that meant an incident occurred here several days ago. He immediately set up a crime scene, using his cowl’s HUD to catch anything of interest. Unfortunately, the amount of traffic that had occurred in this area of the park since then made it difficult to find anything. After several solid minutes of searching, he finally caught a lucky break when his cowl picked up the footprint of a boot old enough to match the age of the remaining pheromones.

 

Batman immediately found and highlighted a trail, following it as it led away from the park trail and into the underbrush. The large boot-print was joined by a smaller pair of feet, this one not wearing any shoes at all. His cowl immediately matched it to Pamela Isly, further confirming her involvement, and Batman’s frown deepened.

 

“Where are you taking him, Pamela?” Batman asked himself as he was led further and further into the park. He eventually came across an old greenhouse, the glass long since cracked and broken from the stresses of time. The victim’s footprint was joined now by dozens of others, and Bruce quickly lost track of it in the chaos. It was no matter to him, he was easily able to gather more evidence from here.

 

From what he was able to gather, this abandoned greenhouse served as a holding pen. Sleeping areas and food, obviously meant for her ‘servants’, were scattered around the building. This soothed Batman’s nerves somewhat, as it lessened the possibility of someone being dead by now. But the fact that he couldn’t find any footprints leading out of the greenhouse caused his concerns to rise. Someone had come in after the fact and swiped away any trace of where they had gone, and now the trail was cold.

 

“Damn…” Batman muttered, then pressed his fingers to his ear. “Oracle, any updates on potential sites of pollution?”

 

“ _Plenty, but none are really sticking out at the moment,_ ” Oracle admitted with a slight sigh. “ _Between this and finding out the League of Shadows’ base of operations, my attention has been a little stretched at the moment._ ”

 

“Hmm.” Batman paused, thinking Oracle’s words over, then came to a decision. “Focus on Ra’s al Ghul first. That’s the priority. In the meantime, I’ll work on uncovering Ivy’s motives.”

 

“ _Got it,_ ” Oracle responded, typing a few keys in the background. “ _Also, just for your information, you have a call from the Watchtower._ ”

 

“I know,” Batman replied, already raising their comms. “Batman to Watchtower, ready for transit.”

 

“ _Acknowledged, Batman. Beaming you up in five,_ ” Mr. Terrific replied. Batman braced himself, then felt his body tingle as the Watchtower’s teleporter picked him up and transported him into the teleporting bay. Diana was waiting for him, resting her arms against a railing while looking down on him.

 

“Bruce,” she greeted, and Batman acknowledged her with a nod.

 

“Diana,” he replied, and together they walked down the corridors of the Watchtower in comfortable silence. Neither felt any need to say anything, figuring that whatever they could say would be best served in front of the others, and soon found themselves in the Founders Meeting Room. The door opened automatically, and they saw that the rest of the League founders were waiting for them.

 

“Good, you’re here,” Superman greeted them as he walked over to pat Batman on the shoulder and give Diana a hug.

 

“Good timing, too,” Flash added, motioning towards the large plate of snacks he had assembled. “Just went and got these from the cafeteria. Feel free to help yourself.”

 

“No thanks,” Batman dryly replied, while Diana smiled and shook her head.

 

“Thank you, Barry, but I’m good,” Diana added. Rather than feel offended, Flash merely shrugged and pulled the food closer to him.

 

“More for me,” he said before beginning to grab a few bits to eat. The others patiently waited for Batman and Wonder Woman to sit down, and once the last Founders did so, the meeting officially began.

 

“First, Diana,” Superman started, prompting everyone’s attention to turn towards the Wonder Woman. “Any update on Themyscira?”

 

Diana frowned and clenched her fists, but otherwise remained calm. “Not much. Whoever this Amazon was, she wasn’t raised in Themyscira or Bana-Mighdall, yet somehow knew enough about our customs to know when to sneak onto Paradise Island and when to strike her target. The only Amazons who got a look at her were the vault’s guards, and they were knocked out almost immediately. All they know is that she was young, at most thirty to forty years old.”

 

“That’s younger than Donna,” Hawkgirl noted with surprise.

 

“Yes,” J’onn J’onzz murmured. “How often do Amazons have children, Diana?”

 

“Not often, since we’re immortal,” Diana replied. “Any that do are gifts from the gods and are celebrated across the island. Which is why her young age is perplexing. We would’ve known about an Amazon that young, but we didn’t.”

 

“Perhaps she was born outside of Themyscira or Bana-Mighdall?” Green Lantern suggested, but Diana shook her head.

 

“Not thirty or forty years ago,” Diana insisted.

 

“Are you certain?” Batman asked, leaning forward to rest his weight on his knees. Diana looked him in the eye, then sighed.

 

“It’s…possible that other Amazons had left the island after me as exiles, forbidden from ever returning,” she explained. “Only Amazons guilty of heinous crimes are punished this way, and one could’ve given birth afterwards.”

 

“Which would explain the apparent hatred towards Themyscira,” J’onn finished. “I’ll start looking into possible sightings of Amazons over the past forty years. Am I correct that an exiled Amazon keeps their powers?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“That’ll make them easier to track. I’ll notify you of any updates. In the meantime,” J’onn turned to look at Batman, “how are teams RWBY and JNPR, Batman?”

 

“They’re adjusting quite well,” Batman explained, sitting back in his chair. “Weiss had an incident a few nights ago regarding a nightmare, but Alfred was able to help her through it.”

 

“That’s good to hear,” Flash spoke up, swallowing his food. “Knew there was a reason I liked that guy so much.”

 

“Alfred Pennyworth’s a good man,” Superman added, smiling to himself, then the Man of Steel turned more serious. “What about their training and equipment? Any updates so far?”

 

“Beyond the standard maintenance and modifications, nothing significant. Weiss has replaced Myrtenaster’s blade with Nth Metal, while the others have used depleted promethium in its stead.”

 

“Sounds expensive,” Hawkgirl joked, knowing that Bruce was more than able to pay for it. “If they need any pointers on the finer properties of Nth Metal, tell them I’m more than free. How goes the replacement weapons for Crescent Rose and Crocea Mors?”

 

“They’re almost complete,” Batman revealed. “By my estimate, they should be finalized in the next few days, hopefully before Oracle can finalize the location of the League of Shadow’s base.”

 

“Any major candidates?” Superman asked.

 

“Somewhere on the north Atlantic seaboard. Other than that, she can’t say,” Batman admitted. “She’s requested access to the League’s satellites to expand her search.”

 

“She can have it. Barbara’s a friend, and if she needs them, she only has to ask,” Superman stated, then he pressed his hands together and rested them on the table. “Which brings me to our next point of concern. John, if you please?”

 

John Steward nodded, then flashed his lantern ring towards the table. At once, the lights inside the room dimmed, and a holographic projection of the world shined above the table. The planet itself was a pale blue, with several red dots scattered throughout the country.

 

“Ever since Trigon’s attack on Jump City,” Superman explained as the corresponding red dot was highlighted, “there have been reports of isolated Grimm activity in conflict zones all around the world. Yemen, Afghanistan, Syria, Nigeria, South Sudan, Kashmir, and Mexico to name a few, and governments are scrambling to respond before the public learns about it.”

 

“The scale’s increasing,” Wonder Woman noted, looking at the timeline of the various incidents. Indeed, the number of incidents had been steadily growing in number, each one closer to the last.

 

“Yes,” Superman grimly noted, frowning slightly. “Our primary suspect is Luthor, but without conclusive evidence, we can’t bring him in. In the meantime, I motion for the League to aid countries in stopping these Grimm attacks while searching for the source.”

 

“Agreed,” the rest of the League Founders immediately replied. They all knew how bad things got on Remnant with the Grimm running around, and it was imperative that they destroyed the Grimm before it got to that point.

 

“Batman, do you think you can track down where the Grimm are coming from?” Diana asked, but Batman shook his head.

 

“Not right now. I have my hands full with Gotham at the moment,” he admitted, but Flash rolled his eyes.

 

“As always…” he muttered, only to flinch when Batman shot him a glare. “Heheh…”

 

Batman ignored Flash’s nervous mutterings then looked back out towards the rest of the Founders. “But I’ll have the Question start looking into it in the meantime.”

 

At once, everyone besides Bruce groaned, some leaning their heads back while rubbing their foreheads. Batman had expected this response, as he often had the same one when dealing with the Question, but he raised his hand up placatingly.

 

“I know, I know. He’s a little wound up,” Batman argued, but Flash shot him a look.

 

“The guy’s a crazy conspiracy theorist, B-Man,” Flash pointed out, while Hawkgirl’s face held a haunted expression.

 

“I once had to spend an hour listening to him ramble on and on about how toothpaste made our teeth detectable by spy satellite…” Hawkgirl shuddered at the foul memory. The only reason why she was forced to listen to him was because they were in a Javelin together working on a case. Green Lantern gave Hawkgirl a look of sympathy and patted her shoulder, while everyone’s attention refocused back on Batman.

 

“Bruce, are you certain the Question is the best man for this?” Diana pleaded, but to her disappointment, Batman nodded.”

 

“Yes. As…questionable as his theories often are,” Batman explained, “he’s still a brilliant detective. With my hands full as they are, he’ll be able to find the source.”

 

A heavy pause hung over the air as everyone looked at Batman. After a minute, he sighed and narrowed his eyes.

 

“None of you have to be partnered with him,” Batman added, and at once the Founders’ dispositions shifted into one of acceptance.

 

“Alright, I can work with that!” Flash exclaimed. “I’m good for it.”

 

“As am I,” Hawkgirl added.

 

“Agreed,” J’onn plainly stated. The others simply nodded, and seeing as how they were all in agreement, Superman turned to look at Batman once again.

 

“I’ll let you deliver the news to him,” Superman said. When Batman said nothing, Superman sighed and hung his head. “He’s already looking, isn’t he?”

 

“Since before the attack on Trigon, yes,” Batman admitted. “He said something about ‘paint shipments’ clued him in.”

 

“How does that…?” Flash began, only to shake his head and sigh. “Never mind. Anyway, GL? How’s the search for Remnant?”

 

“The Corp think they’ve found a lead,” John revealed. “Brainiac’s been busy, and they’re following a trail of destruction to try and find where Remnant was located, as well as where the psychopath himself is going next. Which by itself is a mystery, as up until RWBY and JNPR showed up, not even the Guardians knew Remnant existed.”

 

“Why’s that?” Hawkgirl asked, tilting her head inquisitively.

 

“They’re not sure,” Green Lantern admitted. “It’s like some kind of impenetrable veil was cloaking Remnant, blocking it from view.”

 

“Then how’d Brainiac find it?” Flash questioned, but J’onn perked up.

 

“Perhaps the veil creates a small but noticeable anomaly when compared to the surrounding regions of space? Such a thing could’ve clued Brainiac in that something was amiss, capturing his curiosity,” he suggested. The League Founders ruminated over it for a moment, then one by one nodded in acceptance.

 

“That makes sense,” Green Lantern stated. “I’ll contact Hal. He’s leading the search, and he’ll appreciate any leads he can find.”

 

“Speaking of Hal,” Diana said, her voice growing more somber, “how’s the newest recruit?”

 

A sad look crossed John Stewart’s face, and he sighed regretfully. “The poor girl still won’t leave her room. Even after getting the ring, she’s too terrified. I keep trying, but nothing’s really working.”

 

“Do you need any help?” Hawkgirl offered, knowing who Green Lantern was referring to, but he shook his head.

 

“No. This is a Green Lantern Corp responsibility, and I’ll continue to work with her.” He then smiled and looked towards Batman. “Perhaps we can introduce them, even? Once she feels ready, of course?”

 

Batman looked at Green Lantern and understood at once exactly what he was referring to. He nodded, adding, “I’m sure if you asked RWBY and JNPR now, they’d be more than willing to meet Jessica. All you have to do is say the word.”

 

“Only when she’s ready,” Green Lantern maintained. “The last thing I want to do is force her into something uncomfortable.”

 

“On that, we all can agree.” Superman nodded towards the rest of the Founders, then straightened himself. “Now, let’s move on to funding.”

 

~

 

_November 11 th, 3:00 AM_

_Waziristan, Pakistan_

A man watched as the village below was overrun by pitch black creatures covered in bone armor. The villagers tried to fight back as best they could, but their weapons proved ineffective against the monsters’ hide and bone, and they were quickly torn apart. Those who ran were simply run down and devoured, and after only a few hours of fighting, the entire village was wiped off the face of the Earth. He had, of course, seen it all through the scope of his sniper rifle, but he didn’t do anything to stop it. There was a possibility he could’ve, but stopping it weren’t his orders. They were simply to observe, then clear them out once they were done.

 

“ _I got eyes on the package,_ ” a gruff voice spoke over the radio, his thick, Australian accent making it difficult to listen to.  “ _Crikey, these things give me the creeps. I’m on my way out. You betta not let me get eaten by one of these bloody things._ ”

 

“ _Don’t worry, baby! Momma’s gonna keep you safe!_ ” a shrill, hyperactive voice maintained, but the sniper could hear the Australian roll his eyes even from his position.

 

“ _The hell you will! I’d feel safer with these Grimm than you, ya nutcase!_ ”

 

“ _Knock it off, both of you,_ ” a deeper voice rumbled, the sound of flesh tearing in the background as the sniper saw black smoke filter into the night sky. “ _Hurry up so we can get out of here._ ”

 

“ _Ya don’t have to tell me twice, ya stinking lizard._ ”

 

A deep growl sounded through the radio, and despite himself, the sniper couldn’t help but smile in amusement. A crazed, feminine chuckle accompanied it, but as his comrade exited the building, the sniper returned to his professional stature. He watched as his ally, a bearded man wearing a navy-blue coat and beanie, hurried his way to safety away from the village. The man made sure to avoid any of the Grimm, and luckily so far none had seen him.

 

That changed when the man rounded a corner, only to run face to face with a Grimm the League had started calling ‘Beowolves’. From here, the sniper was easily able to see why, with its bipedal, wolf-like appearance, but he couldn’t focus on that at the moment. Instead, he aimed his sniper rifle and fired three shots in rapid succession, each landing on the exact same spot on the creature’s skull. The first stunned the creature, the second fractured the bone, and the third broke completely through the creature’s brain, killing it instantly. It fell to the ground lifelessly, not that it was alive to begin with, and soon evaporated into black smoke that drifted into the sky above.

 

“ _Oy! Warn me next time, ya bloody bastard!_ ” the man hissed into the radio, waving a metallic boomerang in his general direction. The sniper merely smirked, then frowned as he felt his other radio line buzz. Someone was calling him, and he knew exactly who that person was. Part of him thought he should ghost it, but he also knew that such an act carried a high probability of getting him killed. So, he sighed and pressed his fingers to his ears.

 

“Waller. We got the package, and everyone’s out of the village,” he revealed. A few seconds later, large explosions blossomed in the village as a gunship high above them rained death. Any Grimm still standing were instantly killed, and gunshots echoed across the valley as the rest were mopped up by those on the ground.

 

“ _Good,_ ” Amanda Waller replied callously. “ _Lawton, you and the rest of Task Force X are to report stateside at once._ ”

 

“Going back to the states?” Floyd Lawton asked, spying a straggler trying to rush a girl wearing a red and black harlequin suit. She was firing dual handguns at the creature, who staggered with each hit before collapsing to the ground in a heap. The crazed girl then pulled out a giant mallet and whacked the creature’s head repeatedly, eventually crushing the head like a watermelon.

 

“ _Yahtzee!_ ” Harley Quinn exclaimed jubilantly, watching as Killer Croc wrestled a Creeper out of the ground and tore open its jaws. A sickening crack sounded as they were broken, and he tossed the evaporating body aside as though it was nothing.

 

“ _Yes,_ ” Waller said, nonplussed about the sounds of combat echoing in the background even as Lawton joined in.

 

“May I ask why?” Lawton asked, firing five shots that hit five separate targets in the eye, killing them instantly.

 

“ _I have a mission for you, Deadshot. Isn’t that obvious?_ ” Waller revealed in an annoyed tone. Deadshot rolled his eyes. He’d figured that was the reason, but if he could drag out even an ounce of annoyance from Amanda Waller, he’d figure it was worth it. Deadshot spotted another Ursa charging towards Captain Boomerang, who was focused on killing a Beowolf. Part of Deadshot wondered if he should simply let the prick get mauled a little, but then shrugged and fired a round straight into one of the Ursa’s ears and out the other. Its brain was shredded instantly, and the creature fell to the ground dead as a doornail.

 

“ _Goddamn!_ ” Boomerang cursed, jumping back a little, but Deadshot merely smirked.

 

[~][~]


	34. Gotham by Daylight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Team RWBY and Team JNPR undergo their final preparations for taking down the League of Shadows, the threat of Poison Ivy hanging over their heads, while at the same time integrating themselves further into their new home.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 25: Gotham by Daylight **

[~][~]

_November 13 th, 12:05 PM_

_Gotham City, United States of America_

“Ooh!” Ruby squealed as she, her team, team JNPR, and Damian walked the bustling streets of uptown Gotham. The sky was a pristine, cloudless blue, with sunlight bouncing off of tall skyscrapers onto the concrete below. Pedestrians and cars went by, with no one paying the assembled heroes any attention rather than the odd passerby. If one wasn’t paying attention, Gotham almost appeared to be just another, normal city.

 

The dull thud that came from the alleyway behind them quickly dismissed that notion, and Yang walked back into the light while slapping her hands together.

 

“Got ‘em,” she declared with a grin. “Blake, mind calling the police?”

 

“Already did,” Blake responded. True to her word, they saw a police car around a corner, making its way towards their location. Yang nodded towards them, then gestured her head towards her friends to bid them onward.

 

“I’ll stay back for a bit to answer their questions. Don’t wait on my account,” Yang said. The others nodded, then left her behind as the police car pulled up next to her. They were far enough now that the passing traffic drowned out whatever Yang and the police officers were saying, but they were able to understand the gist of it nonetheless.

 

“I can’t believe that scoundrel tried to rob us in broad daylight,” Weiss muttered to herself, shaking her head.

 

“That’s Gotham for you,” Damian replied, guiding the others further into Gotham. “Some parts are better, but overall it’s a wretched hive of scum and villainy.”

 

“Reminds me of Mantle,” Weiss revealed before frowning to herself. Old shames were brought back up to the surface, while newer regrets joined the mix as well. Seeing the concerned look on Ruby’s face, Weiss shook those thoughts aside and marched forward. She joined Ruby in looking for any shops that caught her eye and eventually found a small clothing outlet filled with high-quality apparel.

 

“Hmm, that looks interesting,” she announced while pointing out. The others looked towards the store, their faces adopting an interested expression. Except for Ruby, Jaune, Ren, and Damian, who instead narrowed their eyes and sighed.

 

“Yeah, I’m not going in there,” Jaune declared, with Ren and Damian nodding alongside him.

 

“Oh, come on, Jauney!” Nora replied with a wide grin. “Where’s your sense of adventure?”

 

“Not in a dress store,” Jaune countered, pointing out the various dresses that lined the windows. “I’ve been in more than enough of those to last a lifetime, thank you very much.”

 

“I agree with Jaune,” Ren added. “Sorry, Nora.”

 

“Aww,” Nora whined, crossing her arms and huffing. Damian, meanwhile, rolled his eyes and crossed his arms in turn.

 

“Whine all you want, you’ll catch me dead before I go in there,” he declared with a huff. The girls looked at the boys, then rolled their eyes in turn and shook their heads.

 

“Suit yourself,” Blake said, then turned to look at Ruby. “You sure you don’t want to come inside?”

 

“Nope,” Ruby stated simply, shuddering to herself due to some unseen horror. Blake and Weiss shook their heads in amusement, then walked inside the shop to purchase whatever caught their eyes.

 

Ruby, Jaune, Ren, and Damian leaned against the storefront, standing in silent contemplation as they waited for their companions. Neither of them felt the need to say anything, whether due to a genuine desire for silence or simply not knowing what to say. Ruby herself was the most uncomfortable from it, looking at the group while practically begging for someone to say something. Seeing as how that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon, she frowned slightly, then opened her eyes once she remembered a very recent development.

 

“Oh, Jaune! Ren!” Ruby started, prompting the three boys to turn their attention towards her. “What’re you guys planning for you double-date?”

 

At once, Jaune blushed and looked away, embarrassment filling his face, while Ren retained his composure. Damian, meanwhile, huffed and looked away, not interested in what amounted to a banal conversation, in his opinion at least.

 

“We’ve been looking at a nice restaurant around here, actually,” Ren revealed.

 

“Ooh, so a dinner date? That’s cool!” Ruby exclaimed, practically bouncing on her feet. Ever since she had learned Pyrrha had a crush on Jaune, which came as a shock to her as she honestly thought they already were dating beforehand, she had practically been begging for details. Surprisingly, Nora had been quite mum on the matter, and Pyrrha reacted similarly to Jaune. That being an embarrassed mess as soon as the matter was brought up.

 

“I hope so. Jaune’s the one who picked it,” Ren revealed, flashing a small smile to his embarrassed leader. “Don’t worry, I’m sure she’ll love it.”

 

“I know, I know. It’s just…” Jaune paused, then sighed while shaking his head. “Pyrrha’s been wanting this for so long, and I want it to be perfect, you know? I owe it to her.”

 

“I’m sure you’ll be fine,” Ruby soothed her friend, knowing just how nervous he was. Damian, meanwhile, rolled his eyes and scoffed.

 

“Freaking out about it isn’t going to help,” Damian advised in his characteristically rough way. Jaune and Ren narrowed their eyes towards Damian’s ‘help,’ but otherwise didn’t outwardly react. After spending so much time with Damian, they had grown used to his demeanor.  Ruby, however, merely chuckled to herself and shook her head. Damian raised his eyebrow at her reaction, giving her a sideways glance.

 

“What’s so funny?” he asked, both accusatory and genuinely curious. Ruby took another look at Damian and laughed again, this time managing to stop herself after a few moments.

 

“Oh, nothing. It’s just,” Ruby smiled again, “you remind me a lot of Weiss when we first met.”

 

Damian raised his eyebrows at Ruby’s remark while Jaune and Ren hummed to themselves, deep in thought.

 

“How so?” Jaune asked, honestly not seeing the connection. Neither did Damian, but Ruby was already prepared to answer, with her finger outstretched.

 

“Standoffish,” Ruby began, “kinda high strung. Can be mean at times, not to mention demanding. Have a really high opinion of themselves and exacting standards and have a cold personality that’s hard to get close to. Especially in the beginning when we first met.”

 

“…hey,” Weiss suddenly replied, having come out of the store holding a bag. The others were behind her, their faces a mixture of amusement and genuine curiosity. Ruby saw the look on Weiss’ face and began to animatedly wave her arms around, an awkward smile on her face.

 

“But!” Ruby continued, trying to make up for potentially, and accidentally, offending her partner. “Deep down, both of you are really good, heroic people. You have such high standards because you work so hard and expect others to work just as hard. I mean, look at you and me.” Ruby gestured to herself and Weiss repeatedly. “We didn’t get along at _all_ when we first met, and now we’re besties!”

 

Ruby’s friends and teammates stared at her for a moment, ruminating over her words. Slowly, one by one they began to nod, with the notable exception of Weiss and Damian themselves.

 

“You know, she does have a point,” Blake declared. Weiss shot the Faunus a betrayed look, then turned her head towards Damian’s. The two of them stared into each other, then shot their heads away with a huff.

 

“Is there a point you’re trying to make?” Damian asked, thoroughly annoyed.

 

“Yes, actually,” Ruby replied, smilingly brightly towards Damian. “All I’m saying, Damian, is that I don’t really care how mean you act or how standoffish you are. I know that one of these days, you and I are going to be friends!”

 

With that, Ruby turned around and marched away, aiming to bring their group along to their next destination. The others watched after her as the distance between them increased. Much to Damian’s irritation, he saw that the others were nodding along with her words.

 

“Trust me,” he suddenly heard Yang say from behind him as she rejoined the group, having apparently heard the conversation and wrapping her arm around his shoulder, “she’s probably right. I mean, look at Weiss.”

 

The heroes turned their attention towards Weiss, who held a strange, haunted look in her face that ended with a shudder.

 

“She breaks down your will,” Weiss mumbled, holding her arms close and rubbing her hands on them. “First it’s just ‘besties,’ then the next thing you know, you’re wearing matching outfits and spending the whole day together…”

 

The others looked at Weiss in concern, but the heiress soon snapped herself out of her stupor and recomposed herself. Damian then lifted Yang’s arm off of his shoulder and began to walk after Ruby. Even if she was distracting and had powers, he didn’t want to leave her alone in Gotham by herself. The others prepared to move after him, but then Damian paused in his step.

 

“Why do you follow her?” Damian suddenly asked, his back still turned to them. The others paused and raised their eyebrows, not quite understanding what he meant.

 

“What do you mean?” Jaune asked. Damian then turned around to look at them, a serious expression on his face. This one was different, however, as it seemed to be on another level than what they were used to seeing on him.

 

“I mean, why do you follow her?” Damian repeated. “I’ve read the reports that you gave the League when you arrived, as well as the reports made afterwards by the League and the Titans. All of you follow her lead and direction, and I don’t understand why.”

 

The Remnantian’s looked at each other, then Yang shrugged. “Well, she’s the leader of Team RWBY. It’s in the name, obviously, and she’s my little sister. Where she goes, I go. Simple as that, for me.”

 

“And I can understand that,” Damian admitted, “but what I don’t understand is why she was made the leader in the first place. She’s naïve, inexperienced, younger than all of you, doesn’t seem to take what we’re doing seriously, and always walks with this…spring in her step.”

 

For a moment, Yang pursed her lips, slightly offended at how he was describing her sister. She was about to retort, but to Yang’s surprise, she saw Weiss nod to herself and step forward. Yang took the unspoken request to stay silent, allowing Weiss to give her answer.

 

“You know, I used to think the same way,” Weiss began. “In fact, when Ozpin made her leader over me, I was furious. Couldn’t accept it at all, for the exact same reasons you just gave. When Ruby said she and I didn’t get along at first, that was entirely because of me.

 

“But, over time, I got to know the real her. Ruby is young, and inexperienced, yes, but I wouldn’t say she’s naïve. I’d say she’s more…” Weiss paused, then smiled lightly. “Optimistic. And after everything that’s happened to us, I think we can appreciate that more than ever. Besides, why do you think people follow Superman? The way I see it, the reasons are pretty much the exact same.”

 

A heavy, contemplative silence fell over the group as they all stared at Damian, waiting to see how he would respond. He stared flatly at Weiss, his eyes showing he was deep in thought, but before he could respond, they heard Ruby suddenly shout towards them from further along the street.

 

“Guys, hurry up!” Ruby demanded, holding out her arms to the side towards a building. “There’s a paintball arena here, and they’re holding a tournament!”

 

“Yeah, let’s wreck some fools!” Nora cheered as she raced toward the younger girl. The others merely smiled and shook their heads before making their way towards them. Damian, however, stayed behind. He watched them leave, ruminating over what they had said. Then he shook his head and walked after them.

 

~

 

When Alfred let Damian escort teams RWBY and JNPR through Gotham, he had expected them to be gone for quite some time. He wasn’t worried, after all, they were more than capable of protecting themselves. But he had to admit that seeing a victorious-looking Ruby walk back into the manor holding a massive trophy in her hands was something he didn’t expect.

 

“Looks like you all had a good time,” Alfred noted, chuckling to himself as the rest of the teenagers entered the manor. “May I ask what the trophy is for?”

 

“Paintball tournament,” Nora explained, grinning wickedly. “We kicked the other teams’ butts!”

 

Alfred chuckled. He could imagine how pitting amateurs and, at best, off-duty police officers up against trained huntsmen, huntresses and superheroes would go. Judging by the look on Yang’s face, it must have been quite a sight.

 

“I’m gonna put this in my room!” Ruby declared as she prepared to walk away, trophy in hand, but Alfred shook his head and offered his hand.

 

“That will not be necessary, Ms. Rose. Please, allow me,” he said. Ruby looked at him for a moment, then accepted Alfred’s offer and handed him the tournament trophy.

 

“So, Al?” Yang asked before he left. “Anything happen while we were gone?”

 

“Yes, actually,” he replied. “Master Bruce requested that you all head down to the Batcave immediately.”

 

“Is it about what Barbara said?” Weiss asked as they prepared to do so.

 

“I believe so, yes. She thinks she found the location of the League of Shadow’s base of operations,” Alfred revealed. Weiss and the others nodded at his answer. They had already suspected it after Barbara called them once they had already won the tournament, so hearing a confirmation wasn’t too big of a surprise.

 

Seeing that they now had a place to be, they bid Alfred farewell and made their way to Bruce’s study. There they found the old grandfather clock. A quick check from Pyrrha proved that Bruce had, indeed, modified it to prevent her previous method of finding it from happening again. They moved the clock handles to the appropriate time, followed by the unlatching of locks as the clock was moved from its base against the wall. The heroes moved down the tunnel, hearing the secret door close behind them, and soon found themselves at the entrance elevator. Damian pressed the button once they were all on-board, allowing the car to descend against the rocky cave wall and down to the Batcave below.

 

There, they found Bruce, Tim, Stephanie, Cassandra, and Jason waiting for them. Bruce was sitting in front of the Batcomputer, which itself was hosting an image of Barbara Gordon. A serious look was plastered across all of their faces, which RWBY, JNPR, and Damian echoed.

 

“Good, you’re here,” Bruce began, nodding towards all of them. “Oracle, if you please?”

 

“ _Certainly,_ ” Oracle replied, typing into her computer. “ _After crosschecking all of the data we got, both from Gotham, Jump City, and Brother Eye, I’ve finally zeroed in on the League of Shadow’s location._ ”

 

Rather than smile at the news, she frowned. “ _Unfortunately, you guys aren’t going to like where it’s located._ ”

 

Oracle brought a series of images on-screen, showing satellite photographs of a ruined city nestled on a polluted coastline. True to her word, there were definite signs of activity hidden among the ruins, pieces of advanced technology tucked away and thermal signatures of people mucking about. One of the images showed a makeshift dock, one able to be rapidly assembled and disassembled as needed. Several crates were being loaded and unloaded, and it wasn’t hard to guess what was housed in them.

 

“Hold on,” Weiss said as she finally took notice of the coordinates each of the images housed in their top right corners. “These were taken close by. Is this…?”

 

“Blüdhaven,” Yang realized with a gasp. “They’re based out of Blüdhaven. Those crazy, clever bastards.”

 

“ _My thoughts exactly_ ,” Oracle concurred.

 

“I don’t see the problem,” Jaune pointed. “Blüdhaven’s not fifty miles away. What’s stopping us from going in right now?”

 

“Jaune, you played _Call of Duty: Apokoliptic Warfare_ , right?” Yang asked, raising an eyebrow towards him. When Jaune nodded, Yang nodded back. “What happened in the Battle of Blüdhaven mission?”

 

Jaune paused, thinking back to the level in question, then groaned in realization. “Ah, crap. I remember now.”

 

“Yes,” Bruce said grimly. “During the Darkseid War, in an effort to keep defeat Kalibak’s forces, a tactical nuclear warhead was detonated in Blüdhaven. The blast blanketing the entire city in a cloud of nuclear radiation. Its effect was exponentially multiplied by Apokoliptic technology caught in the blast, rending the entire city uninhabitable for at least a century.”

 

“It’s a ghost town,” Ruby noted grimly.

 

“One that could kill us just by going into the wrong area,” Jason added, then turned to look at RWBY and JNPR. “Tell me, did Remnant ever have nuclear technology?”

 

“No, at least I don’t believe so,” Weiss admitted. “It’s possible that Atlas might’ve had research into the subject, but at most, it would’ve been theoretical.”

 

“We know what radiation is, if that’s where you’re going,” Blake continued. “We’ve read Earth’s history. The question is, how are we going to get in there? Especially since Poison Ivy’s running around.”

 

Bruce nodded, impressed that Blake had managed to figure out the other subject matter of the meeting before he had even brought it up. He motioned towards Oracle, who quickly pulled a headshot of Pamela Isly from her latest stint in Arkham Asylum.

 

“I have confirmed that Pamela Isly is currently active in Gotham,” Bruce stated. “The GCPD has been made aware and a manhunt is underway, but I cannot in good conscience leave Gotham until she’s been apprehended. Poison Ivy is too dangerous. The last time she was operating, she took over several CEOs and the Gotham City Council with her pheromones, giving her complete control over the entire city for nearly two weeks before she was discovered and apprehended. Who knows what she’s planning this time?”

 

RWBY and JNPR could agree with that assessment wholeheartedly. With Poison Ivy’s ability to control plants and secrete pheromones from her body powerful enough to override a victim’s will, leaving Gotham behind to let her run loose was almost assuredly a disastrous proposition. One they couldn’t afford to make, just as they couldn’t afford to let the League of Shadows run rampant.

 

“How long ago were these pictures taken?” Jaune asked, his hand coming to his chin.

 

“ _Last night,_ ” Oracle explained.

 

“How long until they figure out we’re onto them?” Ren asked, leaning forward.

 

“ _Hard to say. At most, a few days. Maybe a week. After that, they could be anywhere,_ ” Oracle replied. A heavy silence fell over the group as they pondered their options. Ruby studied the images on screen closely, trying to figure out a way to best handle both problems at once. Then her attention shifted, moving towards the assembled heroes before her. Slowly, an idea began to take root, something that Bruce and Weiss seemed to pick up on.

 

“Ruby, you have an idea?” Weiss asked. Ruby looked at her partner then back at Bruce. She swallowed and nodded.

 

“Yes,” Ruby confirmed. “We don’t need to do one or the other. Instead, we should tackle both at the same time. Like what we did just a few nights ago. I mean, not including Batwoman, Tim, or Stephanie, there are,” Ruby paused to do a quick count, “twelve of us in Gotham at this very moment, eight of which have superpowers. We could easily split up to tackle both problems at once. Half of us go to Blüdhaven, the other stays in Gotham to pursue Poison Ivy.”

 

“That does leave a lot of manpower to do both,” Jason noted, already agreeing with Ruby’s logic. To be honest, he was about to suggest the same thing, and something told him so were the other Gothamites.

 

“Not even that,” Weiss add, “We could easily get the League to assist with Blüdhaven, meaning that you guys,” she gestured towards the Bat-Family, “can stay here entirely.”

 

“What about you?” Stephanie asked.

 

“It’s quite likely that at least some of the containers the League of Shadows has in Blüdhaven contain Grimm,” Pyrrha replied, a slight frown on her face. “We know how to handle them more than anyone else, so I think that it would be best if some of us go.”

 

Bruce thought it over quickly, then nodded. “I agree. We have been receiving isolated reports of Grimm activity across the world ever since Jump City, and although the League has responded when able, we simply don’t have enough personal experience to truly know what to expect.”

 

“At the same time, father, we can’t deny the threat Poison Ivy can pose,” Damian interjected. “I do agree that sending both RWBY and JNPR to Blüdhaven is a sound choice, especially with the likelihood of Grimm, but that leaves us at a potential disadvantage against whatever Poison Ivy’s cooked up. She’s taken over superpowered individuals before, including Superman. Poison Ivy’s also allied with other superpowered individuals in the past. There’s a significant possibility that she’s done a similar thing here.”

 

“I know,” Bruce replied, a frown on his face. He was caught in a conundrum. On the one hand, RWBY and JNPR had proven themselves more than capable these past few weeks, and he could easily trust them to take a covert mission into Blüdhaven’s ruins. But doing so might deprive him of a useful asset to take down Poison Ivy. Not to mention, he didn’t like the idea of sending a group of trainees against a well-fortified encampment of well-armed and dangerous terrorists. Ones that almost brought down the League itself.

 

The memory of that incident caused Bruce’s frown to deepen. His eyes briefly glanced towards the Batcomputer, and another paranoid thought crossed his mind. He quickly decided that he’d check the security once again. The last thing he wanted was someone getting into the Batcomputer that wasn’t meant to. Not again.

 

“We’ll go,” Yang suddenly declared, shaking Bruce from his thoughts and prompting everyone to turn their attention towards team RWBY.

 

“Come again?” Jason asked, raising an eyebrow.

 

“I said, we’ll go. Team RWBY can go to Blüdhaven while JNPR stays in Gotham with you guys,” Yang clarified. “Before you go and say ‘Yang, these are terrorists and they’ll kill you,’ let me just say that us sneaking into a well-fortified and hidden criminal compound isn’t all that new to us. We’ve done it before, quite well if I do say so myself.”

 

“You mean the White Fang base in Mountain Glenn?” Damian pointed out, having read the file in question. “Didn’t that end in The Breach?”

 

“Yes,” Yang slowly replied, holding up a single finger, “but had we not intervened, it would’ve been worse, ignoring the fact that Brainiac invaded a few weeks later and made it all pointless. Plus, that time we didn’t know a base was over there, just some suspicious activity. This time, we know what we’re getting into, so we’ll be ready.”

 

“Hmm,” Bruce hummed, giving the idea some thought. It certainly had merit, but not without its own flaws. The more he thought about it, though, the more he began to come around to it. His protégés picked up on this, already knowing where this is going.

 

“I agree with Yang,” Bruce finally declared, prompting Yang to pump her fist in victory.

 

“But,” he continued, cutting Yang off, “I still don’t like the idea of sending you four in alone. I can’t go due to Poison Ivy, so I’ll reach out to the Watchtower, have a few League members run reconnaissance with you.”

 

“Recon?” Ruby replied, raising an eyebrow. “You want us to run recon, not take them out?”

 

“Yes,” Bruce stated simply. “I know that, after everything you’ve been through, you’re more than capable of defending yourselves. However, that doesn’t mean I feel comfortable setting you off against the League of Shadows. They’re not like the criminals you’ve faced before. These are well trained, professional assassins equipped with some of the best weapons, technology, and training in the world. They know what they’re doing and are quite good at it, and unlike White Fang or the Penguin or Black Mask, they will be much more difficult to catch off-guard. If you were to fight them, there is a much higher chance of you getting hurt, and that is the last thing I want.”

 

Yang prepared to retort, but Blake stopped her and shook her head.

 

“He’s right, Yang,” Blake clarified. “I was with the White Fang for years, and as strong as some of their fighters were, the vast, vast majority were little more than Faunus given a gun and told to go nuts. Only the best fighters even get formal training, and it’s from an already trained fighter like Adam Taurus or Sienna Kahn taking on a protégé. If what I’ve read is true, that isn’t the case with the League of Shadows. Even with our powers, it would be dangerous. Recon’s for the best.”

 

Yang frowned, then after a moment sighed. “Dammit. Let me guess, we scout them out and then call in the hammer?”

 

“Precisely,” Bruce answered. “Again, I’ll delve into the details later. For now, we need to prepare. Oracle, if you please.”

 

“ _Got it,_ ” Oracle replied, already knowing what Bruce was requesting. She pulled up a radioactivity map of Blüdhaven,  showing which areas were more radioactive than others. “ _The amount of radiation covering Blüdhaven is immense. The League has been operating in the safer areas, from what I can see, but most of the city isn’t so lucky. I doubt that your Aura will protect you from the effects of radiation poisoning, so before we even think about going in, you guys are going to need some protective gear. Luckily, Mr.-Paranoid-and-Prepare-for-Everything over here had already asked Lucius Fox to make some for you all when you arrived._ ”

 

“Ruby, Weiss, I want you two to go to Wayne Enterprises and talk to Lucius,” Bruce explained. “He already knows everything, so you don’t need to worry about keeping any secrets. He’ll provide what we need.”

 

“Ooh, I’ve wanted to go there!” Ruby exclaimed, and Weiss nodded.

 

“As have I, actually,” the former heiress admitted. “Is that why you’re asking us to go?”

 

Bruce didn’t answer, telling Weiss everything she needed to hear. She chuckled and shook her head, then nodded affirmatively towards Bruce. He nodded back, then turned to face the others.

 

“In the meantime, finishing up your weapons is of prime importance. How close are they to being finished?”

 

“Crocea Mors is almost done,” Jaune admitted. “Just a few finishing touches, but I should be ready to go tonight.”

 

“Same here,” Ruby admitted. “All I have left to do is calibrate it. I’ll get that done once I get back from meeting with Lucius.”

 

“Good.” Bruce turned towards the others. “Everyone else, it’s business as usual. Let’s get back to work.”

 

They nodded, then everyone split apart. Ruby and Weiss made their way back towards the service elevator while the others went to various areas of the Batcave, either to train or, in the rest of RWBY and JNPR’s case, take another online class.

 

“Ooh, that reminds me. Gotta take that real quick,” Ruby exclaimed as she pulled out her scroll and entered the Gotham Academy class.

 

“You still haven’t done that?” Weiss asked with a raised eyebrow. “I got that done this morning. What were you doing?”

 

“Heh heh, I was doing…stuff,” Ruby replied sheepishly. Weiss narrowed her eyes towards her partner, not believing her for a second.

 

“…You were watching cartoons again, weren’t you?” she accused.

 

“I prefer to think ‘cultural acclimation,’ thank you very much.”

 

~

 

After explaining the situation to him, Alfred was more than willing to take Ruby and Weiss where they needed to go. The limousine ride back into Gotham wasn’t particularly noteworthy, although Ruby had to admit that she still wasn’t quite used to riding in a limo to begin with. Weiss was, but Ruby chalked that up to her rich girl experience.

 

“Here we are,” Alfred said as he pulled up to the front of the Wayne Enterprises building. “I’ve already notified Lucius you were coming. Talk to the receptionist and she’ll lead you to him.”

 

“Thank you, Alfred,” Weiss replied as the butler opened the car doors for her and Ruby. They got out of the car and bid him farewell, waving him off as he nodded, got back into the driver’s seat, and drove back to Wayne Manor. Ruby and Weiss waited until the limo was out of sight, then walked through the front doors of Wayne Enterprises straight to the receptionist’s desk. There they saw a woman with short red hair sitting in front of a computer, who quickly took notice and straightened herself out.

 

“Can I help you?” the receptionist asked. Weiss quickly stole a glance towards the nametag on the woman’s desk, seeing that it read ‘Clara Saberton’, and nodded.

 

“Yes. My name is Weiss Schnee, this is Ruby Rose,” Weiss revealed, gesturing towards her partner who offered an awkward wave in response. “We have an appointment with Mr. Fox?”

 

“Ah, yes!” Clare replied, typing away into her computer. “I’ll call Lucius right away. Please, take a seat.”

 

Clara Saberton gestured towards one of the many seats that lined the reception area. Weiss and Ruby nodded then quietly walked over, sitting down next to each other as Clare dialed Lucius’s office number.  They patiently waited for a few minutes, Ruby kicking her feet idly while Weiss sat prim and proper, her hands seated atop her lap. She twiddled her fingers, tapping them against her legs until she noticed Clara no longer talking on the phone. She wasn’t looking towards them, but Weiss took her change in activity as a sign that Lucius Fox was on his way.

 

As she waited, the former heiress went over what she knew about the man. Lucius Fox was one of Bruce Wayne’s closest friends, a man who seemingly had a ‘Midas Touch’ towards any business he came into contact with. He had displayed an uncanny ability to turn failing businesses into prosperous enterprises, which led him to be a highly sought-after figure in corporate America. He was currently serving as the CEO of Wayne Enterprises, a position he showed no signs of stepping down from even after his contract was slated to expire. Lucius seemed to genuinely care for the company and the city it resided in, even if he had undoubtedly received better offers from companies out of town.

 

But Weiss honestly didn’t care about that. What she cared most about what she knew of Lucius Fox was what everyone said about the man. Every article, interview, story and more about Lucius Fox said the same thing: that he was a smart, ethical man who was easy to get along with and wanted to do good for the world. She couldn’t help but compare him to her father, and the differences were striking. Jacques Schnee was a ruthless man who believed that one had to be cruel and merciless towards enemies, real and perceived, to grow as large as he did. No laws, community guidelines, ethical standards, moral quandaries, or basic rights stood in his way to turn the SDC into the largest company on Remnant.

 

Lucius, on the other hand, wanted to run Wayne Enterprises first and foremost as an ethical company, one concerned about how their business practices would affect the world, their employees, and their communities. By all accounts, he had succeeded. Wayne Enterprises, ever since he had taken over from the previous CEO, a man named William Earle, was consistently ranked as one of the most ethical companies in the world. They no longer sold weapons to the military, purchased resources from properly vetted supplies that met stringent ethical guidelines, treated their employees with respect and provided due compensation needed to provide for themselves and their families. Rather than bust any attempts at early unionization, Lucius instead worked with them to meet both of their needs, to the point where union leaders from across the country gave high praise. None of that considered the generous charitable contributions Wayne Enterprises gave under Lucius’ watch, far beyond any minimum tax incentives, not to mention the various social causes the company championed. According to her father, such activities and ethical standards would’ve led to a company failing, preventing them from reaching their fullest potential, but under Lucius Fox’ watch, Wayne Enterprises had grown to become one of the largest corporations in the world. Only LexCorp was larger, making Bruce Wayne the second-richest man in the world.

 

That was what most inspired Weiss. For years, she had believed with every fiber of her being that what her father had done, the people he had trampled over in his quest for greater wealth and power, was wrong and unjust. Here, she was sitting in a monument to that truth, that what she believed was right. Even more than the first time she walked through Wayne Manor, Weiss felt liberated.

 

She knew, of course, that Ruby likely didn’t see it that way. From the look on her face, she was more impressed with the obvious wealth and prestige the Wayne Enterprise building exuberated. Not that Weiss could blame her, after all it was a beautiful building to look at, both inside and out. A grand example of Gotham Style, even after the various retrofits it had received over the years.

 

Finally, after what seemed like ages, the elevator dinged and opened, letting out a sharply-dressed, dark-skinned man with short black hair. Part of it was greying, but for the most part, he looked to be only a few years older than Bruce Wayne himself. He quickly saw the two girls and walked over with a smile on his face, prompting Ruby and Weiss to stand up in turn.

 

“Mr. Fox?” Ruby said tentatively, and the man nodded in response.

 

“Yes, but please, call me Lucius. You two must be Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee,” Lucius greeted them. Ruby smiled fully while Weiss’ response was more uptight. A small grin was more than enough for her needs.

 

“Yes. Mr. Wayne has spoken quite highly of you,” Weiss stated, and Lucius nodded back in turn.

 

“As he has of you. On occasion, at least. We all know how he is at times,” Lucius joked. Ruby and Weiss let out a short chuckle alongside him, then Lucius beckoned the two huntresses towards the elevator. “Please, come with me to my office. We can continue our discussion there.”

 

Ruby and Weiss nodded, following the CEO into the elevator car. Once they were all inside, he pressed a button, allowing the car to ascend to the top of the building. The ride was in silence, both due to neither Ruby nor Weiss knowing what to say to pass the time and not knowing what prying eyes and ears were watching them. Even if Lucius supposedly knew everything already, that didn’t mean someone eavesdropping on them didn’t. Finally, after nearly a minute of riding in the elevator, they opened to the top executive suite of the building. To Ruby’s surprise, but not to Weiss, they found that almost the entire top floor was entirely dedicated to Mr. Fox’s needs. Bookshelves and fancy drawers lined the dark wood walls, and a deep blue and black carpet softened their footsteps.

 

“Wow… Your office is big,” Ruby said, her head swiveling around the room.

 

“Not my choice, actually,” Lucius explained as he sat down on his chair, beckoning for Ruby and Weiss to sit across from his desk. “The board had to force me into it, and I couldn’t get out. But it does allow me to conduct my work for Bruce effectively, so it isn’t so bad.”

 

“I can imagine,” Weiss said, leaning back in her chair. “I’ve seen the fruits of your labor. Very impressive, I must say.”

 

“Thank you, Weiss. I appreciate that.” Lucius’ expression then turned serious and he leaned forward. “Before we continue, I must ask: How are all of you doing? Have there been any…issues since your arrival?”

 

Ruby and Weiss looked at each other. Then, with soft expressions on both of their faces, they turned to face Lucius once again.

 

“It’s going…good, all things considered,” Ruby admitted. “A few close calls, especially after Jump City, but I can’t really complain.”

 

“We’re healthy, well-fed, and have plenty of people around us to help with our problems,” Weiss continued. “It’s all we can really ask for right now.”

 

“Good, good,” Lucius said, nodding to himself. “If any of you need any assistance whatsoever, please feel free to reach out to me. I may not have anything comparable in my life to what happened to you, but I’m willing to help however I can.”

 

“Thank you, Lucius. We really appreciate that,” Weiss said with a light smile. Lucius smiled comfortingly back, then cupped his hands together.

 

“Now then, for the actual reason you’re here,” Lucius continued, pulling out a remote and pressing a button. One of the bookshelves rotated, revealing a set of colored hard-suits with clear visors over the helmets.  Each one was unique, incorporating some facet of their normal design. Ruby’s was red and black, the hips containing a short, metal skirt reminiscent of her own. Weiss had the same, only hers was in a white and light-blue color scheme. Yang’s was yellow and orange, the arms and wrists slightly bulkier to house Ember Celica, and Blake’s was black and dark purple, with white lines highlighting the edges and a pair of pointed protrusions atop the head to account for her ears. Each suit housed their symbol on its chest, and although they couldn’t see JNPR’s, they knew that their suits must have followed the same design philosophy.

 

Seeing that Ruby and Weiss’ attention was focused squarely on the hard-suits, Lucius continued, “Bruce requested me to construct these when you arrived in Gotham. Wanted it to be capable of protecting the wearer from a variety of hazardous environments while still enabling combat. Not too dissimilar to his own suit, in fact, just more tailored to your specific abilities. Not that he was all that specific when he first made the request, but I was able to figure it out pretty quickly.”

 

“Ooh.” Ruby got up from her chair, her eyes practically sparkling as she walked over to the small, red suit. Weiss got up as well, only instead of rubbing her hands over her white suit like Ruby, she instead cupped her chin and hummed.

 

“Interesting,” Weiss stated. “What can it do?”

 

“For starters,” Lucius explained as he walked over to stand next to her, “the suits contain a built-in air supply that can last for up to twenty-four hours. It’s completely insulated against fine particles and poisonous gasses, not to mention extreme heat and cold. It can survive depths of up to thirty-thousand feet below sea-level and can also survive the vacuum of space. Finally, it functions as a Class A HAZMAT suit, protecting you from the effects of intense radiation, toxins, and poisons. Bruce was very insistent on that one in his call this morning. In short, these environmental suits will allow you and your friends to survive wherever you need to go, on Earth or otherwise.”

 

Ruby practically squealed at the information Lucius was providing, and Weiss felt her interest rise. As she ran her hand over a holster obviously meant to house Myrtenaster, her thoughts drifted towards the core aspect of being a Huntress. Lucius immediately understood where her head was at, and he nodded in understanding.

 

“In terms of combat, I must admit that I left much of the protection to your Aura,” he admitted. “From what I understand of it, it already boosts your strength and protects you from damage, so I opted to focus instead on survivability of hazardous environments.”

 

“Smart,” Weiss said. “No need to double-up on what we already got.”

 

“Indeed. I must admit, your Aura actually proved to be a boon for me. I was able to incorporate features that I otherwise wouldn’t have been able to. Moving on, I was able to add some features to assist you in combat, mostly supplementary of course. The hips and back contain magnetic holsters that you can attach your weapons to. They are strong enough to keep them attached during your advanced movements but weak enough to where you can easily take them off when need be.”

 

“Oh, like _Halo_!” Ruby commented, but Weiss ignored her and allowed Lucius to continue.

 

“It can survive some small-arms fire, admittedly, but that is mostly due to its protection against micrometeorite impacts. Anything larger than a pistol round will run the risk of the suit losing its structural integrity, so I’d advise preventing that from happening. Nevertheless, mobility is not significantly impeded by the suits’ design. It’s easier to move without it, obviously, but it’s not too restrictive. Finally, the suits house a utility belt around the waist, where you can store various munitions, supplies, and otherwise. All of which are vacuum sealed, of course.”

 

Weiss felt her respect for the man increase as he laid out more and more of the suits’ functionalities. He had gone above and beyond with them, and the craftsmanship was easily seen. She could easily imagine herself and her friends having to fight or explore in these and finally nodded in appreciation.

 

“Thank you, Lucius. Truly,” she said, looking at Lucius Fox in the eyes. “We really appreciate this.”

 

“You’re welcome, Weiss.” Lucius smiled, and Weiss smiled back. Then she felt curiosity bubble within her, and she gave her suit an appraising eye.

 

“If you don’t mind me asking, how much did each of these suits cost to make?” she asked. Lucius hummed to himself, looking up towards the ceiling as he mentally tallied the cost.

 

“Individually, with the advanced materials, internal software, and mechanics, not to mention the copious amounts of quality control testing I inflicted on all of these before I even showed them to you, I would say each suit cost around…twenty-five million dollars.”

 

Ruby squeaked in surprise, quickly pulling back her hand from the suit. Weiss stared at Lucius with wide eyes, giving her suit a quick glance before looking back at him.

 

“I take it that’s why you’re not selling this to NASA?” she asked.

 

“Parts of it, I do,” Lucius clarified. “But, when all combined, it significantly raises the price. But, when it comes to Bruce and the League, cost is no object.”

 

“How does this stuff get made without anyone finding out?” Ruby asked, eyeing the expensive pieces of hardware. Lucius looked at the young girl, then smiled and began moving back towards the elevator.

 

“Let me show you,” he said, gesturing for them to join him. Ruby and Weiss quickly did so, entering the elevator as he pressed a button labeled ‘B5.’ As the car descended, Lucius continued to explain.

 

“Everything you just saw was developed out of WayneTech’s R&D department. Individual parts and components are available for sale…”

 

“Where you then combine them to assemble it yourself,” Weiss finished. Lucius nodded, confirming what she had already suspected. Of course, he likely left out the use of various proxies and shell companies to muddy the waters further, so unless you really knew where to look, you wouldn’t be able to trace the legitimate sale to Bruce Wayne or Lucius Fox.

 

The rest of the descent was made in silence, Ruby tipping up and down on the balls of her feet as she tried to keep herself active. Weiss remained prim and proper, allowing the silence to perpetuate, and before long the car stopped. The doors split open, revealing a bustling laboratory filled with various workstations and equipment, manned by engineers and scientists working on things neither Ruby nor Weiss could guess at.

 

“Welcome to WayneTech,” Lucius revealed. “The pride and joy of Wayne Enterprises, if I do say so myself. It’s where I got my start, actually, before I become CEO of the entire company. You can see many of our ongoing projects as we speak. Hydrogen fuel cells, advancements in solar panels and wind turbines, tidal hydroelectric energy, quantum computing, pharmaceuticals, medical technology, and much more. We have various other sites around the country working on space travel, nuclear fusion, advanced artificial intelligence, and other projects which require more security and safety than I feel comfortable placing into a crowded city.”

 

If Ruby was excited before, she was positively exploding now. Her head was swiveling around the room so fast that occasional petals fluttered in the air. Weiss was prepared to stop her, only to see that Lucius was eyeing the petals with an intense curiosity and wonder. It was then that Weiss realized that this was likely the first time Lucius had seen Aura or Semblances in person, so it was no surprise he was fascinated by it.

 

Still, she had to stop it before wandering eyes took notice. Weiss coughed, catching Ruby’s attention, who turned around to see Weiss holding a disappearing rose petal in her fingers.

 

“Ooh…sorry,” Ruby quietly said, rubbing the back of her head. Then she whined and threw her arms out wide. “But just…look at this place! It’s amazing!”

 

Ruby’s comment seemed to snap Lucius out of his stupor, and he chuckled to himself while shaking his head. “I’m glad you feel that way, Ruby. If you want, how about you explore this place while I talk with Weiss about something.”

 

“REALLY?!” Ruby shouted, bringing her clenched hands to her chest while bouncing up and down. Weiss rolled her eyes in exasperation while Lucius merely chuckled, then waved over a man wearing a hardhat and blue collared shirt.

 

“Jonathan, this is Ruby Rose. She’s a guest of mine, and she’s very interested in our activities here in WayneTech. Do you mind showing her around?” Lucius asked. Ruby awkwardly smiled and waved, which Jonathan took one look at before groaning.

 

“Ugh, I’d rather not babysit a kid,” he complained. Ruby pouted then shook her head.

 

“I won’t get in the way, I promise!” she insisted. The man looked at her again, then at the insistent look on his boss’ face. He groaned again, then gestured with his head for Ruby to follow.

 

“Come on. I’ll show you around. Just don’t touch anything,” he declared, and Ruby cheered before following after him. Weiss and Lucius looked on, the Huntress smiling to herself and shaking her head.

 

“He has no idea what he’s getting into,” she said, mostly to herself. She then turned her head to look at Lucius, raising her eyebrow. “Is there a reason why you wanted to speak to me alone?”

 

“Yes, actually. Please, come this way,” Lucius insisted, walking her towards a closed-off section of the lab. They entered a large, white, cylindrical room. Computers and monitors surrounded a clear glass tube, where workers wearing white protective suits handled vials of powder with various tools. Some were looking at them through microscopes, while others were handling them through more physical means. Weiss took one close look at the powder, then gasped.

 

“This is Dust,” she realized, looking between the inert Dust and Lucius himself.

 

“Yes,” he replied. “The League gave WayneTech all the samples they could spare after the Grimm attack in Metropolis, along with S.T.A.R. Labs. The substance is…remarkable, so much untapped potential, and we’ve only scratched the surface.”

 

“I know what you mean,” Weiss said as she took a closer look at the powder. “Actually, I’d say that you’re understating it. Mr. Fox, I do not exaggerate when I say that our society revolved around Dust, perhaps even more than the nations of Earth rely upon oil and fossil fuels. We used Dust for almost everything. Heating, fuel, electricity, manufacturing, agriculture, weapons, defense, clothing, you name it. Outside of the Grimm, nothing else came close to influencing our society as much as Dust. It allowed us to do many things, and the only limitations it had was its natural form was highly unstable if handled incorrectly and it became inert out of Remnant’s atmosphere.”

 

“I figured as much, from what I’ve been told. The League’s been very secretive on that front,” he admitted. Weiss looked back at the workers in front of them, crossing her arms in front of her waist.

 

“What do you hope to do with it?” she asked, without looking at Lucius. He didn’t look at her either, his attention focused squarely on the work in front of him.

 

“First, try to get it working again. We don’t know if Dust truly is a material only capable of working on Remnant, but we have a theory that it was the traversal through the Boom Tube that might have led to its present state. Am I correct in saying that it worked on Brainiac’s ship, which was well outside Remnant’s atmosphere?”

 

“Yes, but only towards the end of the fight,” Weiss admitted. “Even then, it had parts of Remnant’s atmosphere inside of it. For all we know, that was the reason why it worked.”

 

“That is a possibility, one that we are exploring. But, if we can get it working, Dust would open so many doors for humanity. Ones we can’t even conceive of right now.”

 

“But you only have a limited amount. You can’t possibly—” Weiss stopped, slowly realizing the next logical course of action. “You plan to replicate it, don’t you? Make more Dust from what you already have?”

 

“If we can get Dust to work properly, yes. We’ll get to that if we can. No reason to count our chickens before they hatch, after all.” Lucius then turned to look at Weiss. “It’s why I asked you to come here, actually. I believe that you and your friends can offer us a valuable perspective on Dust, ones we can’t fully understand just yet.”

 

Weiss stayed silent, alternating her gaze between Lucius and the inert Dust. A heavy silence hung over the air, and for a moment Lucius was worried he may have overstepped his bounds. Finally, however, with her attention focusing on the Dust, Weiss began to speak.

 

“For starters, I think you’re understating how difficult it would be to manufacture Dust,” Weiss proclaimed. “My grandfather’s company had been trying for years, and we never made so much as a single breakthrough. Granted, research might have been stifled by my father in an effort to maintain his monopoly, but manufacturing artificial Dust will still be incredibly difficult, if not impossible.”

 

“I’m well aware of that,” Lucius replied.

 

“I know, I just wanted to point it out.”

 

The two then settled into a long back and forth discussion over the properties of Dust. Lucius and a few researchers were taking notes, ones that Lucius trusted enough to keep her close proximity a secret. A healthy rhythm was quickly formed, where Lucius or a researcher would ask a question and Weiss would immediately answer. Due to her previous life as the heiress to the largest Dust company on Remnant, she was a valuable well of knowledge to them. She explained the various types of Dust, both pure and combination varieties. She explained how Remnantian society used Dust in different ways, how it interacted with Aura and an individual’s soul. How Dust both lifted up Remnantian society while, at the same time ironically precluding them from different sources of energy due to its prevalence and utility.

 

After what seemed like hours of intense discussion, Weiss finally began to exhaust herself of what she could readily answer. The researchers and Lucius took notice of this and bid her farewell, thanking her profusely for everything she shared. Weiss thanked them in turn, grateful for at least the possibility of bringing something from her dead home back to life. Even if it was only a faint possibility, she could still hope and dream for the project’s success.

 

“Thank you again, Weiss,” Lucius said as he and Weiss exited the Dust lab.

 

“No, Lucius. Thank you,” Weiss insisted. “Truly. You have…no idea how much it would mean to us to get Dust working again, even if there isn’t enough for us to use.”

 

Lucius wanted to say that he could, but he realized that he really didn’t. He was reminded again of the horrific events that led to this discussion in the first place, and a pang of sympathetic regret coursed through his heart. Instead of speaking, he patted her shoulder comfortingly then began to walk them back to the main elevator.

 

“You know, you remind me a lot of my son,” Lucius pointed out. Weiss raised an eyebrow and looked up at the CEO, who nodded to himself while keeping his attention focused forward. “His name is Luke. He’s a few years older than you, actually, but just as smart and dedicated.”

 

“Hmm,” Weiss hummed to herself. “Where is he, if you don’t mind me asking? I’d imagine that he’d be working in Wayne Enterprises with you and Mr. Wayne.”

 

“Believe me, I tried,” Lucius admitted. “But he wanted to do something else, something more personally meaningful. So, after graduating top of his class at MIT, he instead opted to enlist in the military. He’s currently as a Lieutenant over in Afghanistan, and his tour isn’t slated to be over for another three months. I’m both proud and worried for him.”

 

Weiss nodded her head. “He reminds me of my older sister, Winter. Only, she joined the Atlesian military to escape my father. You have him beat in that regard.”

 

“After everything you’ve told me, I should certainly hope so,” Lucius remarked, and Weiss nodded.

 

“You have. You and Mr. Wayne,” Weiss insisted just as they finally arrived back at the elevator. There they saw Jonathan waiting for them, a serious expression plastered across his face. To Weiss’ exasperation, she realized that Ruby wasn’t with him, and she groaned wondering just what the young girl did.

 

“Jonathan, where’s Ru-?” Lucius began, but to both his and Weiss’ surprise, Jonathan cut him off.

 

“Hire her,” he demanded. Lucius and Weiss shot their heads back in surprise, and they looked at the head engineer in bewilderment.

 

“Come again?” Lucius asked.

 

“That girl, Ruby? Hire her. Right now,” Jonathan repeated.

 

“…May I ask why?” Lucius asked, feeling both amused and intrigued.

 

“Do you know what I have been doing for the past two hours?” He pointed towards Ruby, who Weiss just now noticed was handling a workstation alongside some amazed engineers and scientists. “I have been discussing with that girl over there some of the most advanced, hard to understand engineering and metallurgy topics I can come up with. Alloys, forging processes, how to operate advanced machinery, the mathematics _behind_ everything we do around here! She understood it _all_! In fact, she knows more than some of the graduates who work here! She even admonished one for using improper safety standards before I could point them out!”

 

“Is that right?” Lucius was fully intrigued now, while Weiss was sighing exasperatingly and slapping her forehead at what her partner must have done while she was away.

 

“Yes! I’m telling you, she’s a prodigy! You need to hire Ruby now, before someone else gets to her,” Jonathan insisted just as Ruby’s head perked up. Through thick safety glasses, she looked out towards the assembled men, then bid the workers around her farewell as she took off her glasses and hardhat and she made her way over.

 

“I heard my name, what’s going on?” she asked, not understanding what they were talking about.

 

“Apparently, you’re potentially getting hired,” Weiss revealed.

 

“Say _wha_?” Ruby asked, tilting her head towards her partner. Weiss rolled her eyes while Jonathan and Lucius looked her over.

 

“Hmm, if what you’re saying is true,” Lucius began, “there is the obvious problem of her being underage. Child labor laws would prevent me from hiring her full-time.”

 

“Then hire her as an intern, I don’t care,” Jonathan offered, then readjusted his hardhat. “I’ll let you handle it. If you’ll excuse me, I’ve gotta scold an idiot who’s working without a hardhat.”

 

Ruby took a quick glance at where the head engineer was headed, then groaned. “Ugh, I just talked to Thomas about that. He’s going to get himself hurt!”

 

Lucius and Weiss looked at Ruby, the former in amusement and the latter in resignation. Lucius prepared to speak, only for Weiss to step in front of her partner and hold up a finger.

 

“Now, before we go any further,” Weiss declared, causing Ruby to whip her head around to look at her partner in surprise, “I insist that, as Ruby’s partner, any negotiations regarding compensation and benefits be arranged through me. I will not have her be taken advantage of, even if I trust you.”

 

“I see no reason to argue,” Lucius stated as he prepared to lead them into the elevator. “We can use my office to iron out the details.”

 

“Splendid. I will insist on a written contract before anything gets finalized,” Weiss insisted as they entered the car, Ruby barely following the conversation.

 

“Of course,” Lucius replied as he closed the elevator doors and sent it upward to his office.

 

“Uh, Weiss?” Ruby began, completely lost. “What are you-?”

 

“Hush, Ruby,” Weiss interrupted, holding a finger to Ruby’s lips. “I am representing you.”

 

“…Representing me for what? What did I do?”

 

Neither Weiss nor Lucius answered as they quickly fell into a complex and jargon-filled discussion involving subjects Ruby couldn’t hope to understand. Words and phrases like stock options, health insurance, salary, 401k, and more flew by her head, and by the time they finally got to Lucius’ office, Ruby felt dizzy and had to lay down. Weiss and Lucius continued to negotiate, and Ruby could only whimper and hope it ended soon.

 

~

 

Ruby stared at the check in her hand as she and Weiss rode back to Wayne Manor in the limousine. Even after having it for nearly half an hour, she still couldn’t quite understand how, exactly, everything turned out this way.

 

“Now, the first thing we need to do is put that into a savings account,” Weiss continued her lecture. “Luckily, part of the terms of our employment is a bank account with Wayne Financial, with a generous interest rate attached to them.”

 

Weiss’ words brought to mind another piece of confusion regarding this bizarre chain of events Ruby found herself in. Ruby had quickly lost track of time since Weiss and Lucius started negotiating, but what made it worse wasn’t that it took seemingly forever for Weiss to find a suitable deal for her. No, that was finished about halfway through. Then, it turned out that Lucius was so impressed with Weiss’ business savvy that he started trying to hire _her_ , which restarted the entire process.

 

They went to Wayne Enterprises to simply pick up some fancy, expensive HAZMAT suits. They left with not only the suits, but also with part-time internships, complete with insurance, financial assistance, and a generous salary. Weiss even managed to negotiate an advance payment. How, exactly, Ruby didn’t know, and at this point, she was too afraid to ask.

 

“I can see you two had an eventful meeting with Lucius,” Alfred noted with amusement as he eyed them from the rearview mirror.

 

“Indeed,” Weiss said, smiling widely. “I must say, Mr. Fox was delightful, and I’m happy I had the privilege to meet him. Wouldn’t you say so, Ruby?”

 

“…Yes?” Ruby did feel the same way, but it still took her a second to register what Weiss wanted her to say. The former heiress didn’t seem to pick up on Ruby’s uncertainty, or at least didn’t seem to acknowledge it, and instead picked back up where she left off.

 

“Once you have a suitable amount in your account, _then_ we can start investment opportunities. Get your money to make you more money. I’ve already compiled a list of companies I believe are sound investments for all of us.”

 

“Yay…”

 

Ruby could feel her attention slipping further and further away as Weiss continued to give her financial advice. She tried to pay attention, but it was just so _boring_ to her. Part of her wondered if that made it, by default, super important. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, they pulled up to Wayne Manor and slowed to a stop.

 

“Oh, thank God,” Ruby whispered as Alfred opened the car door for her and Weiss. The Red Reaper couldn’t get out of the limo fast enough, and the only reason why she didn’t immediately rush through the door was the fact that a yellow convertible was parked in front of the manor as well.

 

“Whose car is that?” Weiss asked as she walked up to Ruby, pocketing her own check while Alfred regarded the car for a moment. Then, realization struck, and he sighed.

 

“Of course,” he muttered, prompting Ruby and Weiss to turn their attention towards him. Instead of answering their unspoken question, he instead led them to the door.

 

“Come along, now. Best not keep her waiting,” Alfred said as he opened the door. Ruby and Weiss looked at each other before stepping inside, wondering exactly who owned the car. There wasn’t anyone waiting for them in the main entry, but they did hear voices coming from a nearby room. A door was open, yellow incandescent light shining out. Slowly, the two partners entered the room, where they saw Bruce, the rest of their teammates, and his protégés.

 

All of them were talking to a raven-black haired woman wearing a purple coat, a reporter’s badge attached to her chest.

 

“Ah, good! You’re here, now we can begin,” the woman proclaimed as she stood up and offered her hand. “Lois Lane, Daily Planet.”

 

“…Weiss Schnee,” Weiss introduced herself, shaking Lois’ hand. “This is my partner, Ruby Rose.”

 

“…Hi,” Ruby greeted, shaking Lois’ hand as well. “May I ask why you’re here?”

 

“Oh, to interview you all, of course,” Lois stated as though it was obvious. “I’ve been trying to get an interview with you for months, now, and after waiting I figured I should probably introduce myself.”

 

“She’s very persistent,” Nora noted, idly chewing on some chips while the rest sat stiffly in their chairs.

 

“How’d you fin- I mean, what makes you think you want to interview us?” Ruby asked. “We’re not interesting.”

 

“Right, right.” Lois nodded, giving Ruby a wry smile and nodding. “Well, actually, I do. Let’s go over the facts. Two months ago, a Boom Tube opened over Metropolis, depositing eight heavily injured aliens, six females and two males, all young, along with an assortment of Grimm. The League, of course, quickly took care of the immediate problem and took the aliens into custody, on account of their heavy injuries at the hands of a being later determined to be Brainiac. Information was shared about the Grimm along with Brainiac, but nothing about the aliens themselves or the planet they came from. This says that the League wanted to keep it a secret, likely to protect their identities.

 

“However, a month ago, the Titans received eight new members out of the blue. Testimony from Control Freak during his trial indicated that they were, indeed, the aliens from Metropolis. The apparent demographics of the aliens matched his testimony, and their arrival in Jump City was confirmed during Trigon’s attack. In fact, Mr. Jaune Arc, I believe,” Lois pointed towards the boy in question, who flinched and straightened his back, “calling himself the White Knight, dashing name by the way, rescued Jimmy Olsen from being killed by Church of Blood cultists.”

 

“…I saved you, too…” Jaune muttered. Lois, instead of responding, merely smiled and shook her head.

 

“Anyway, Mr. Arc here kindly detailed to me and Jimmy the specifics regarding an apparent Grimm smuggling operation, revealing that Grimm are indeed loose on the planet. A few isolated reports and rumors about similar attacks around the world are abound, which governments are vehemently denying in an effort to prevent a panic. I wanted to talk to you all then, but before I could, you had already gone. For a while, your trail disappeared, likely due to you being back up in the Watchtower, until a few nights ago when several powerful crime lords and villains in Gotham were arrested in one night. Oswald Cobblepot, Bane, Edward Nygma, Victor Fries, and the late Daniel Powers. While researching for that story, I came across rumors of eight superpowered individuals working alongside the Batman’s protégés during that night in question. Given that I know for a fact that Batman is truly Bruce Wayne, it was easy to connect the dots from there. Which leads to the obvious conclusion that the eight aliens are living and training in Wayne Manor. Did I get anything wrong?”

 

The Remnantians and Gothamites stared at Lois silently. A lone cough, courtesy of Ruby, broke the silence, and finally, Ren nodded.

 

“No, you pretty much got everything,” Ren admitted, and Lois clapped her hands together.

 

“Perfect!” Lois declared, sitting back down on a chair, crossing her legs, and pulling out a tape recorder, pens, and paper. “Now, I do fully understand why you all are keeping your identities a secret, so I’ll be using your superhero names during the interview. Is that alright with you?”

 

“Lois, I don’t think—” Bruce was interrupted by Lois’ hard stare, shutting him up almost instantly. Yang looked at the reporter in awe, her head swiveling between the two adults repeatedly.

 

“Did you just out-glare the Batman?” Yang asked, a wide grin on her face.

 

“It’s an acquired trait, obtained through years of practice. Now,” Lois pressed her thumb against the recorder, “shall we?”

 

~

 

They spoke to the reporter for hours about anything and everything related to Remnant. Aura, Semblances, the Grimm, the various kingdoms that lived on it including their cultures, political systems, and everything in between. Only personal information, such as family, friends, or anything that could reveal their identities to the world at large, was off the table. Their time at Beacon, however, was fair game.

 

“So, is it safe to assume that Remnant’s Huntsmen and Huntresses were its equivalent of superheroes?” Lois asked, writing notes onto her pad.

 

“Yes, but there were a few key differences,” Weiss explained, finding the interview to be intriguing. “For starters, outside of special occasions, the superheroes of Earth are far more focused on stopping crime. While Huntsmen and Huntresses occasionally assisted the police, generally speaking, our job was to deal with the Grimm.”

 

“For payment, correct?” Lois continued.

 

“That’s right,” Yang answered. “Now, before you say, ‘that sounds like Huntsmen and Huntresses are mercenaries,’ it’s different than that. True, some were more unscrupulous than others, but the system was deliberately designed for Huntsmen and Huntresses to remain independent of any one kingdom.”

 

“Couldn’t a kingdom’s military have handled such a task?”

 

“They used to, mostly,” Ren admitted, “but after the Great War, society as a whole grew a distaste towards standing armies. The thought was armies were used to serve the interests of the government rather than protecting the people, and also brought conflict and war, which led to Grimm, death, and suffering. So, when the kingdom of Vale won the war, the king felt it appropriate to take any means necessary to reduce the risk armies posed while at the same time keeping people safe.”

 

“I see.” Lois nodded. “So, the Last King of Vale decided to replace the militaries, that could fight people and Grimm in equal measure, with Huntsmen that would only fight the Grimm. With their defense maintained, the size of a kingdom’s military would understandably decrease, reducing the likelihood of conflict in the future. A smart system, given the circumstances. But, if that is the case, why did the kingdom of Atlas maintain such a strong military afterwards? Didn’t their Huntsmen grant them enough protection?”

 

“Atlesian culture was highly regimented and militaristic. A carryover from when they were simply Mantle,” Weiss explained. “You have to understand; Mantle lost the Great War. Hard. As such, the newly formed council wanted to lift their people’s spirits. This led to their decision to both lift the area around Alsius Academy into the sky, forming the city of Atlas, and their decision to keep their military. Over time, the headmasters of Atlas Academy would encourage their students to join the military, which in their mind was maximizing efficiency. It was a highly controversial practice, admittedly, but wasn’t one forced onto the student body.”

 

“Hmm,” Lois hummed and pursed her lips. “One could argue that explicit encouragement by the headmaster was forcing it.”

 

“No one was punished for _not_ joining the military after graduation, if that’s what you’re implying,” Weiss insisted, thinking back to her sister. She knew for a fact that Winter wouldn’t have let anyone, even General Ironwood, force her into doing something she didn’t want to do. Weiss had to force herself not to take offense, knowing that Lois Lane was just doing her job. That didn’t stop a noticeable frown from crossing her face, however, one that Lois quickly noticed.

 

“Uh-heh,” Ruby chuckled uncomfortably, “Other  people, like my uncle, would probably say something different about that. There’s a reason it’s considered controversial by all the other Kingdoms after all…” She poked her fingers together while studiously avoiding the faintly betrayed look the Atlesian was giving her. The young leader was uncomfortably with the whole subject of politics, but figured Ms. Lane should know that the views of the people of Remnant could differ quite a bit.

 

“One final question,” Lois changed the subject. “Since your arrival on Earth, you’ve all spent considerable time with both the Justice League and the Titans. I understand that, at least during the training process, huntsmen and huntresses operate in four-man teams similar to the Titans and other individual superhero teams around the world. Was there a similar organization to the Justice League on Remnant?”

 

RWBY and JNPR looked at each other, then Ruby herself nodded and looked back towards Lois. “Not…exactly, but you could technically consider the headmasters of Atlas, Beacon, Haven, and Shade to fill that role. Especially Ozpin, the headmaster of Beacon. They all seemed to follow his lead on everything.”

 

“Was Ozpin, then, your world’s equivalent of Superman?”

 

Ruby thought for a moment, then shook her head. “Kinda, but not really. I mean, he was the unofficial head of the entire Huntsmen community, just like Superman, but he didn’t do anything himself personally. Not anymore, at least. He hadn’t been an active Huntsmen in years when Brainiac attacked.”

 

“I see, I see.” Lois wrote a few more notes into her pad, then nodded towards the Remnantian teenagers. She then turned off the tape recorder, and at once RWBY and JNPR let out a sigh of relief.

 

“Oh, come on. It wasn’t that bad,” Lois joked, only for Nora to pout and give her a soft glare.

 

“Easy for you to say,” Nora protested, wagging her finger. “You are a very _thorough_ lady, Ms. Lane.”

 

“I try, Nora. I try,” Lois replied with a smile, gathering up her papers. “In all honesty, thank you for sitting down and answering my questions. I can definitely write an article on this, and you’ll probably see it in the _Daily Planet_ in the next few days.”

 

“Nothing too sensitive, I hope,” Ren insisted, and Lois nodded.

 

“Of course. A reporter has to keep her sources secure, after all,” Lois replied, then turned over to Bruce. “Bruce, a minute?”

 

“Will you accept a no?” Bruce rhetorically asked. The look Lois gave was all the answer he needed, and at once the others got out of their seats and left the two alone in the room. For a moment, silence hung over the air, each waiting for the other to start before Bruce finally sighed and began to speak.

 

“If you’re asking about Poison Ivy, I don’t have the specifics yet,” he stated. “But, something tells me you do.”

 

“As a matter of fact,” Lois said, pulling out a manilla envelope and handing it to him, “I do. I’ve been doing some digging around here, and I have a couple of sources from inside ACE Chemicals telling me some very interesting things.”

 

“How interesting?” Bruce asked as he opened the envelope and began to read the contents.

 

“Oh, you know. The classic ‘dumping harmful chemicals into protected waterways to dodge environmental legislation and costs.’”

 

“How long?”

 

“Since Scarecrow. According to my source, the Board was hoping to use the chaos of his attack as an excuse to cut corners and dump waste wherever they wanted. When authorities would inevitably catch up, they would claim the terrorist attack caused the damages that they only just now caught. Even with the inevitable fine, they think they’d save the company about a hundred-million in costs.”

 

“Not anymore, they won’t,” Bruce noted with a frown. Lois’ evidence was extensive, impressive in its scope yet delightfully detailed and irrefutable. “More importantly, ACE Chemicals dumping waste into the environment would get Poison Ivy’s attention.”

 

“Which is why I’m giving this to you. As much as I want to bring those guys down, stopping her from taking any lives is more important.” Lois stood up. “Don’t worry about giving that back to me, I already made copies.”

 

“I’ll give these back to you, regardless,” Bruce replied, standing up as well. He prepared to leave the room, only for Lois to gently grab his shoulder and stop him.

 

“Bruce, where’s the rush?” Lois said with a smile. “Oh, did you honestly think you were getting away from an interview tonight? Especially when Wayne Enterprises just announced the complete purchase and merger of GothCorp?”

 

Bruce didn’t answer and instead sighed, sitting back down. Lois smiled triumphantly, grabbing another tape recorder and preparing herself.

 

“Honestly, I’m actually happy you guys were able to help them out,” Lois continued. “I met Powers once, and he was a good man. Shame he did what he did, though.”

 

“He was, in his own way,” Bruce agreed. Another silence fell over the group, with Lois not looking at Bruce while he stared intently at her. Finally, Bruce said, “Does he know?”

 

“Does who know?” Lois asked without skipping a beat.

 

“You know who I’m talking about,” Bruce answered. Lois paused, her body going still as she wondered how to reply. Bruce remained silent, reading her body language to see the swirl of emotions going on in the reporter’s head. Lois seemed to pick up on this and turned to face Bruce with a chuckle.

 

“Can’t get anything past you, can I?” Lois joked. Despite himself, Bruce couldn’t help but smirk.

 

“We did date for a time,” Bruce pointed out, only for Lois to snort.

 

“Yes, how could I forget that? Especially how it ended, with me having the story of the century, ‘Batman: Unmasked,’ and I couldn’t say a thing about it. You know, I like to think that, out of all your romantic partners, I’m the one that got away.”

 

“Alfred would agree with you, there,” Bruce joked. The two friends chuckled, feeling fond memories of a long-since passed time flow by. When the laughter subsided, Bruce’s expression turned serious once again. “You didn’t answer my question, though.”

 

Lois sighed and looked down. “To answer your question, no. He doesn’t know that I know.”

 

“How long have you?”

 

“About a year now. In hindsight, kind of obvious. Disappointed in myself for not picking up on it sooner.”

 

“We often see what we expect to see.”

 

“That’s the excuse I went with, sure,” Lois dryly retorted, then sighed again. “Look, I know why he didn’t, but all I want is for him to just be honest and tell me himself. I’m not even angry anymore.”

 

Bruce just stared at her, causing Lois to puff up her cheeks and narrow her eyes. “Oh, you’re one to talk. You did the exact same thing. And stop changing the subject.”

 

“I wasn’t doing anything of the sort,” Bruce insisted, leaning back on his chair and falling back into a false persona. Lois recognized the transition, then nodded and turned the tape recorder on.

 

“Mr. Wayne, thank you for joining me this evening. I wanted to talk to you about the recent acquisition of GothCorp.”

 

~

 

RWBY and JNPR sat outside the office as Bruce and Lois continued their interview. Blake thought about trying to eavesdrop but figured doing so would’ve been incredibly rude and so she decided against it. Instead, she occupied her time by looking up and reading several of Lois Lane’s articles from over the past few years. The volume and quality of her work was exceptional, covering a myriad array of subjects that all held critical importance in modern Earth society. Interviews, exposes, editorials, Lois did it all. The role of superheroes in a post-Darkseid world was perhaps her most famous work, being the one that earned her a Pulitzer Prize, and she could definitely see why it earned that prestigious award. She could also see why many argued the article directly paved the way towards the acceptance of superheroes and away from them being considered outside the law.

 

But, more than that, Blake was most interested in the well-researched articles Lois wrote revealing abuses of power, civil rights violations, police brutality. Stories that shone a light into the darkest reaches of the world, allowing it to be just a little brighter. It was inspiring, in a way.

 

Finally, the door handle jiggled, catching the assembled heroes’ attention. From the other side, Bruce opened it, allowing Lois to pass by.

 

“I’ll go make the copies,” Bruce declared as he walked down the hall, undoubtedly heading towards the Batcave. Lois nodded in his direction, then took notice of the huntsmen and huntresses watching her.

 

“Hey,” she greeted them as she sat down, flattening her pants against her legs and placing her notepad on her lap.  A comfortable silence soon enveloped them, no one truly wanting to break it. Blake, however, couldn’t help but stare at the reporter from over her scroll, an action that quickly caught Lois’ attention.

 

“Blake, right?” Lois asked, prompting the Faunus to shoot her head up in embarrassment.

 

“Um, yes. Blake Belladonna,” she admitted. Lois nodded, then tilted her head to get a better look at the article Blake was reading. She quickly recognized and remembered it, nodding her head appreciatively.

 

“Ah, I remember that one. Systematic racial profiling in arrests made by the Metropolis Police Department.”

 

“I’ve been reading up on it,” Blake admitted. “And similar cases like it. From what I’ve seen, it’s…complicated.”

 

“Right, right. Because you were part of the White Fang, correct?” Lois asked. Blake nodded, and Lois thought back to details Blake provided during their interview. She quickly determined why Blake would be interested in such stories, and slightly frowned.

 

“Yes, both of our planets appear to have had similar problems. It disgusts me,” Lois declared, “but I like to think its why I became a reporter in the first place. Even in a place like Metropolis, a shining, glimmering gem, there’s a dark underbelly that runs underneath. One that hurts good, peaceful people for no real reason. Heroes like Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman take their fight to the darkness directly, but I firmly believe that seeking out and exposing the truth can do just as much good, if not more, than simply punching it away. Wouldn’t you agree with that?”

 

Blake looked at Lois, then slowly smiled and nodded towards her. “Yeah, I think I can.”

 

Lois smiled back, then saw Alfred carrying the manila envelope in his hand. Lois quickly stood up and grabbed it, shaking the butler’s hand and bidding both him and the heroes farewell before announcing she had to return to Metropolis. The heroes watched her leave, Ruby and Nora going the extra mile and actually waving her goodbye. Lois was a good enough sport to do the same, and only once her yellow convertible disappeared down the driveway did they turn back inside.

 

“So, did you all enjoy your meeting with Ms. Lane?” Alfred asked. Most of them groaned, but Blake merely smiled and nodded.

 

“Yes, actually. She was…interesting,” she said. Alfred nodded in agreement, then turned to face the heroes once again.

 

“Now, I’m afraid I must head up to the kitchen and prepare for tonight’s dinner. In the meantime, I suggest you all head on down to the Batcave. If I know Master Bruce, and after nearly forty years I should hope so, I believe your next mission will be starting shortly.”

 

“How soon until we leave?” Ruby asked as the others already made their way towards the Batcave.

 

“No more than a day,” Alfred firmly declared. Ruby nodded, then turned to join her teammates. She soon found herself in the elevator, descending deeper into the cave, and her thoughts ran wildly about her upcoming mission. The threats they would have to face, the obstacles they would need to overcome. Most importantly, she thought back to her weapon, and almost immediately she and Jaune went to the weapon’s bench and began to work.

 

~

 

_November 14 th, 5:00 AM_

_Batcave, Gotham City_

RWBY, JNPR, Bruce, and his protégés stood behind the firing range as Ruby walked out from the workbench. She was carrying a long black-and-red case gingerly, as though worrying that a single drop would shatter it. They all knew that was ridiculous of course, nothing of Ruby’s make would be so fragile, but at the same time, they could understand why Ruby was being so cautious. She only just finished it, after all, everyone knew the instinct to protect something brand new from getting so much as a scuff mark.

 

“Let’s see it, Ruby!” Yang called out from the viewing area. Ruby shot her sister a smile, then carefully placed the case on the bench before her. She unlatched it, revealing the boxy, collapsed form of Crescent Rose once again. True, it wasn’t the original weapon, the remaining pieces were still encased in their room, but from what Yang could see, the replacement was identical in many ways. It was noticeably bigger, however.

 

“Everyone, say hello to the new, and improved, Crescent Rose!” Ruby announced, holding up the weapon for all to see.

 

“You didn’t choose a new name for it?” Jason asked, raising an eyebrow. “I honestly thought you would’ve.”

 

“Yeah, you see, I was _going_ to do that, but then I realized the new Crescent Rose was too similar to the old to really justify it,” Ruby explained. “Jaune thought the same thing.”

 

“So, Crescent Rose mark two?”

 

“Exactly!”

 

Jason thought for a moment, then nodded. “Hmm, I can respect that.”

 

“Ugh, enough talking about names!” Nora complained. “I wanna see what it can do!”

 

Ruby looked up at Nora then flashed a playful salute, the tip of her tongue sticking out of her mouth. She then held up Crescent Rose, unfurling it to reveal the classic scythe configuration.

 

“As with the original Crescent Rose, Mark Two is a highly-customized sniper scythe,” Ruby explained, rubbing her hand along the shaft. “The difference lies in the composition. I’ve replaced the titanium-Dust forged frame with an alloy of depleted promethium, titanium, and vanadium. This makes it nearly indestructible, so I don’t have to worry about a jerk like Trigon breaking it again.”

 

“You got him back, though,” Yang pointed out. Ruby smiled innocently, then moved on to the blade.

 

“I’ve replaced the steel blade with Nth metal, and the head itself can rotate three-hundred-and-sixty degrees whenever I want.” Ruby paused to demonstrate this capability, pushing a button on the hilt that caused the scythe blade to spin in a circle. The heroes nodded, quickly understanding the increased range of opportunities such an upgrade permitted. Ruby nodded back, then pressed another button. The spinning stopped, then the scythe blade straightened to form a warscythe.

 

“The warscythe configuration makes its triumphant return,” Ruby noted, only to press another button that caused the back of the scythe to fold back. A spear of Nth Metal shot upward, forming a three-sided weapon that had an axe-like head on the front, a spike in the back, and a spear on the top. “I can also turn it into a halberd, giving me even more versatility if I need it.”

 

“Oooh,” Nora said as she took the weapon in. Ruby looked towards Bruce and nodded, telling him to move on to the next phase of the demonstration. A group of wooden practice dummies appeared inside the training range, and Ruby collapsed Crescent Rose back to its carrying state.

 

“Huh, it can mechashift much faster now,” Weiss noted. Ruby smiled, glad that her partner was able to pick up on that, then crouched down to prepare herself. A timer appeared, counting down from ten, and Ruby took a deep breath. She released it just as the timer reached zero, and in a burst of rose petals, Ruby shot towards the closest dummy.

 

Ruby unfurled Crescent Rose into its classic scythe configuration, which she then swung into the dummy’s midsection. The blow bisected it, and Ruby was already onto the next couple by the time the top half hit the ground. Severed limbs and heads littered the area as Ruby relentlessly destroyed each and every target. Between each one, she reconfigured her weapon into a different mode. She slashed a dummy’s chest with her warscythe, stabbed into another’s heart with the pointed end of her halberd, bludgeoned a head with the blunted back of her scythe, and more. A flurry of rose petals filled the air, yet they did little to obscure the audience’s vision. Their focus remained on the demonstration, studying it with analytic eyes. Thus far, they were all deeply impressed.

 

Once all of the dummies were annihilated, Ruby finished with a flourish, bringing her weapon behind her back and resting the scythe-end on the ground. The audience respectfully clapped, and Ruby blushed in slight embarrassment before taking a bow.

 

“Thank you,” she said, bringing her body back up and rubbing the back of her head.

 

“Come on, Rubes. Is that it?” Yang asked, raising an eyebrow and giving a pointed stare towards the weapon still held behind Ruby’s back. Ruby flashed a smile and nodded, reconfiguring her weapon into a familiar sniper rifle.

 

“As before, Crescent Rose can still turn into a sniper rifle,” she noted, moving her hand in front of the receiver to draw attention to it. “However, it is no longer bolt-action! I have now modified the action to be a dedicated semi-automatic, and the weapon itself is now a bullpup design to allow for a more compact frame.”

 

To show this, Ruby pulled out an empty magazine and held up her weapon, showing the receiver to be on the butt of the weapon. She quickly loaded it, pulling the charging handle back to mock a reload. At the same time, Ruby pressed a button on the side of the handle, causing a scope to flip from the side of the weapon and rest on the top.

 

“Crescent Rose now has a multi-optic digital adjustable sight, capable of night vision, thermal imaging, two to twenty-times magnification, x-ray, sonar, and more. The digital component allows me to keep scope glint to a minimum, or even link the targeting directly to my mask display, but I have a more traditional sight if needed.”

 

Ruby then pulled up the weapon closer to her body, grabbing hold of the barrel with one hand while waving the other next to it. A large smile broke out, causing the spectators to raise their eyebrows in curiosity.

 

“But, the real magic of my baby lies in the barrel,” Ruby emphasized. “I’ve made it so that it’s adjustable, starting from the largest and utilizing internal servos to tighten and lengthen the barrel as needed.”

 

Ruby looked back up at Bruce and nodded, and again Bruce brought out several targets for her to test Crescent Rose on. She held up the weapon, pulling out a long magazine and showing it to everyone.

 

“The smallest round I can use is the 7.62x51mm NATO round, meant to be used in buildings and close quarters. When using this round, Crescent Rose is more of a DMR and not a sniper rifle.”

 

Ruby loaded her weapon, which automatically adjusted as the rounds were loaded. The spectators watched as the barrel tightened and shorted, proving that Ruby’s boasts were quite founded. Yang wasn’t surprised, though. She knew how skilled Ruby was in the art of mechashifting, as her sister liked to call it. Crescent Rose was already a complicated weapon to begin with, so to hear Ruby managed to make it even more complex was the next logical step.

 

They watched as Ruby flipped the scope away, opting to use Crescent Rose’s iron sights. She rested it against her shoulder, then began to fire in quick succession. Two shots struck a dummy in the center of its chest, prompting Ruby to move on to the next. Two more shots rang out, and the process repeated until twenty rounds were fired. Ten dummies were marked as KIA, and Ruby flicked the safety on and removed the magazine. At the same time, she pulled out another magazine, this one filled with a larger round.

 

“The default round is .50 BMG,” she revealed, slowly moving the boxy magazine in front of her to ensure everyone got a look at it. Once she was satisfied, Ruby reloaded her weapon, and again the barrel shifted to compensate. It extended to its original length and the barrel widened in turn. Again, using the iron sights, Ruby aimed her weapon and fired at another dummy, hitting center chest as before. Unlike the 7.62x51mm, this time the chests exploded on impact, severing an arm as well. Nine shots followed the first, each one destroying the unfortunate dummy that got shot, and only then did Ruby cease and eject the empty magazine. She then pulled out another, this one filled with even larger rounds.

 

“Next, we have the 14.5x114mm round. I intend to use this against lightly armored vehicles,” Ruby noted as she reloaded. As the weapon shifted, the barrel extending out even further, the spectators raised their eyebrows. A 14.5x114mm round was already a large and powerful round, but Ruby had clearly said she could fire four different types of rounds from Crescent Rose. What could she possibly fire that was larger than a .57 caliber?

 

Seven shots rang out, and seven dummies had their upper bodies practically explode from the impact. When she was finished, Ruby ejected the magazine and pulled out one final box, the size of the rounds contained making everyone raise their eyebrows.

 

“Finally,” Ruby announced with her eyes gleaming as she reloaded, the weapon automatically extending and widening to the point where the barrel went up to past Ruby’s head, “we have a 20mm!”

 

“A twenty- _what_?” Bruce asked in disbelief, but Ruby either didn’t hear or ignored him as she planted Crescent Rose, now bearing a closer resemblance to an artillery piece than a rifle, into the ground with the scythe blade. She took an extra moment to brace herself against the monstrosity and softly breathed out, then caressed the trigger.

 

The audience _felt_ the recoil from where they were sitting as a report like a bomb going off ripped through the cave, and the dummy just…ceased to exist. Along with a frightening chunk of the safety berm far behind it. Not wanting to cause even more damage to the range, Ruby flicked the safety on after just the one shot and turned towards the stunned spectators.

 

“So, what do ya think?” she asked expectantly. No one said a thing, too focused on the smoking weapon still resting on the bench. The silence was then broken by a faint sniffle, prompting everyone to turn towards the source. They found it to be Jason, who was struggling to hold back tears.

 

“Jason, are you crying?” Stephanie asked incredulously. The Red Hood fervently shook his head, wiping away his tears.

 

“No, I just had something in my eyes,” he insisted. None of his comrades were convinced, and instead rolled their eyes and turned their attention back towards Ruby. She seemed to pick up on their unspoken concern and nodded.

 

“Don’t worry, I know not to use the 20mm on people. No _amount_ of rubber will keep a round that big from not being lethal. Even the .50 BMG was too dangerous for direct hits, which is why I added the smaller settings in the first place.”

 

“What _do_ you intend to use it on, then?” Tim asked, raising an eyebrow.

 

“Something I really, really need to kill. Like a Goliath or Giant Deathstalker.”

 

“…You know, that’s fair.”

 

The others thought it over, and soon nodded in agreement. Even Bruce, despite his apprehension towards guns in general. It was clear that Ruby put a lot of work into her weapon, and he could respect that.

 

“It’s good, Rubes,” Yang called out, flashing her younger sister a smile and a thumbs up. “Now come on, I wanna see Jaune’s.”

 

“Oh yeah, right,” Ruby said, quickly rushing back to her weapon, grabbing it, and placing it back into its case. She then rushed back up to the stands, allowing Jaune to tentatively step out with his own white-and-gold case.

 

“So, uh,” he began, feeling nervous after Ruby’s demonstration, “I’m going to be honest. Crocea Mors isn’t near as impressive as Crescent Rose. It’s still a sword.”

 

“If you had listened to me, it could’ve been more,” Ruby grumbled, still disappointed that her best guy friend didn’t take up her offer of turning it into an assault rifle. Jaune noticed this and rolled his eyes, then unlatched the case and pulled out Crocea Mors. The sword and sheath now sported a gold trim along the edges and hilt, respectively, adding a splash of color to the otherwise white metal. At the same time, they couldn’t help but notice the edges of the shield appeared to be foldable and slightly boxier than the rest, telling them that something was inside it.

 

“But,” Jaune continued, “I figured Crocea Mors was a classic for a reason, so why not run with it? Ruby helped me a lot with this, by the way, so most of this can be chalked up to her. I just had the ideas. Anyway,” Jaune paused, pulled out a notecard and started reading from it, “the blade is now made of a depleted promethium-titanium-vanadium alloy, same as Crescent Rose. The shield is as well, meaning it’s almost impossible for someone to destroy it. Again.”

 

They all knew who Jaune was referring to, and none felt the need to bring him back up. Jaune looked towards Bruce, who quickly summoned another rack of dummies for Jaune to test his weapon on. He stepped out onto the arena, carefully moving around the broken bits that Ruby had previously destroyed, and immediately set upon the nearest dummy. He decapitated it in one swing, and in the same motion, swung his body around to bisect another. Seeing a third, he thrust his weapon through the head, the end of the blade poking out the back. Jaune pulled it back, the motion pulling the dummy forward and causing it to fall to the ground and forcing Jaune to step back quickly to avoid being hit.

 

“Hehe,” he chuckled awkwardly, looking back up at his audience. Jaune quickly noticed that Ruby and Pyrrha were flashing him a thumbs up, mouthing that he was doing a good job. He felt his spirits rise, and so he moved on to the next phase of his demonstration by collapsing his shield and inserting his sword into it. He then reconfigured it into a claymore and held the combined weapon for everyone to see.

 

“Now, as before, I can combine the sword and sheath to make a claymore,” he read from his notecard, “but with help from the illustrious and brilliant- Okay, Ruby? Why did you write this?”

 

“It’s not wrong!”

 

“…Anyway,” Jaune rolled his eyes, ignoring the chuckles coming from the spectators, “the claymore can now do this.”

 

Jaune pressed a button on the hilt. At first, nothing happened, but then they saw the edges of the blade glow red hot. Electricity ionized the air, and soon a thin veil of plasma marked the edges of Crocea Mors.

 

“By using the electromagnetic properties of Nth Metal, as well as generous help from Hawkgirl, we were able to ionize the air around the edges of the blade and coat it in plasma.” Without saying a word, Jaune gripped his weapon and swung it vertically into a dummy. The heated blade carved through it like butter, charring the edges and causing two smoking halves to fall to the ground. The spectators raised their eyebrows in intrigue, waiting to see what Jaune would do next. Slowly, the blade cooled down, but the electricity remained.

 

“I can also use the electricity on its own, adjustable from a normal taser up to ‘fried Ursa’ level,” Jaune motioned his hands towards the blade, “I’d show you guys, but—”

 

Jaune’s fingers accidentally grazed the weapon, and with a yelp, he quickly pulled his hand away. He shook it, trying to get rid of the pain while ignoring the snickering in the background. He frowned slightly, then sighed and shook his head.

 

“Finally,” he continued, trying to get the demonstration back on track, “I had Weiss help me with this.”

 

Jaune looked towards Weiss, who immediately understood where he was going. The two nodded at each other, and with the electricity turned off, Jaune stabbed Crocea Mors into the chest of another dummy. At first, nothing happened, but then they saw faint wisps of gas escape the blade. Crystals of ice began to consume the practice dummy, quickly encasing it. Satisfied, Jaune pulled back his weapon and looked at the completely frozen dummy, and with a nod, swung his heavy sword into its side, shattering it completely.

 

“So, basically, I turned Crocea Mors into a multi-elemental blade, all without any Dust.” Jaune finished, collapsing his claymore back into a simple sheath. He looked back up at the spectators, proudly puffing out his chest.

 

“What do you guys think?” he asked. A brief silence followed, broken by a jubilant Nora cheering on her fearless leader. The others sounded their agreements as well, and Jaune blushed with embarrassment.

 

“Both of your weapons are impressive,” Bruce noted, standing upright and walking away. “Perfect timing, too, as now we can proceed to the next phase of our operation.”

 

“Right,” Ruby replied, the atmosphere suddenly gaining a serious edge to it. “When do we set off for Blüdhaven?”

 

“As soon as you are able,” he answered, walking away. “Once you’re dressed, meet me back at the landing pad.”

 

The younger heroes nodded, and RWBY quickly made their way towards the armory. There they saw their HAZMAT Combat Suits waiting for them, and they took a moment to appreciate the workmanship. Weiss was the first to move, entering the pod to grant herself some privacy as she changed. Her teammates followed, and soon each member of team RWBY was inside. Several minutes passed as the huntresses struggled into their armor. Grunts and groans followed their movements, but soon enough the teens were fully suited. They walked out with their helmets in hand, and once they saw each other fully dressed, they couldn’t help but give their teammates an appraising look.

 

“You know,” Yang finally said, taking it all in, “we look _good_ in these.”

 

Weiss looked herself over, then nodded back towards Yang. “It appears so. By the way, we might want to bundle our hair before we put on these helmets.”

 

“Ugh, don’t remind me,” Yang groaned, hanging her head and running her fingers through her golden locks. “I’m sorry, baby. I’ll make it up to you, I promise.”

 

“Can you _be_ more melodramatic?” Blake teased as she grabbed her hair and began to tie it. Yang responded by playfully sticking out her tongue at her partner, who rolled her eyes while continuing to work.

 

“Sucks to be you guys, as _I_ don’t have to worry about that!” Ruby announced as she walked away proudly. “That’s what you get for having long, impractical hair.”

 

Yang could only laugh at Ruby and shook her head, “Whatever you say, Ruby.”

 

Ruby flashed her sister a toothy smile, and once Yang, Weiss, and Blake were done, they all walked out of the armory and towards the Batcave’s landing pad. There they saw a Justice League Javelin waiting for them. Batman was standing before it, talking to a man and woman wearing a green and black-and-yellow HAZMAT suit, respectively. They took notice of the huntresses quickly, and the older heroes turned to face them. It was then that RWBY recognized them as Green Arrow and Black Canary, and the two parties met each other in the middle.

 

“So, you’re the little rascals Canary and I are babysitting?” Green Arrow joked as he shook Ruby’s hand.

 

“Hey, who says you’ll be babysitting us?” Yang shot back playfully, placing her hands on her hips.

 

“The fact that we beat the eight of you last time?” Green Arrow replied in a joking manner. Weiss, however, rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

 

“We were heavily drugged on painkillers, exhausted from two days of nonstop fighting, and were not in the best state of mind. This is a totally different situation.”

 

“Sure, keep telling yourself that.” Green Arrow smiled, then shook the rest of the huntresses’ hands. “Seriously, though, glad to have you with us. Even when you guys were drugged, you gave Canary and I a hell of a time, so I for one am excited to see what you can do when you’re at one-hundred percent.”

 

“As am I,” Black Canary added, shaking Ruby’s hand and following up with the rest. “I’m not going to lie, going into Blüdhaven is a dangerous game. If the two of us didn’t have complete confidence in your abilities, you wouldn’t be coming. We’ve been keeping track of your work so far, and it’s very impressive.”

 

“Thank you,” Blake said, shaking Black Canary’s hand. “We’ll be sure to meet your expectations.”

 

“I’m sure you will.” Black Canary smiled, then turned towards where Batman was standing. “Batman, any—”

 

She stopped herself upon noticing that, once again, Batman was nowhere to be seen. She sighed and rubbed her forehead, “God, I hate it when he does that.”

 

“I know, it’s so rude,” Yang added, shooting her partner a knowing look. “And _melodramatic_.” Blake didn’t respond, merely looking away as she prepared to step onto the Javelin.

 

“Are we going to go or not?” she asked, wanting to change the subject. Yang laughed and shook her head, then turned to face JNPR as they walked forward.

 

“Hey,” Jaune began, still dressed in his casual attire, “we just wanted to wish you all good luck.”

 

“Same,” Ruby said, giving her friend a hug that he quickly returned.

 

“Stay safe, alright?” Jaune quietly asked, and Ruby pulled away before reassuringly patting Jaune on the shoulder. No further words needed to be said, and none were. Around them, the rest of RWBY and JNPR hugged their friends goodbye, and both Green Arrow and Black Canary patiently waited in the Javelin’s entry ramp.

 

“Good luck on your date,” Yang called out as she and the rest of her team started walking up the ramp. “I don’t want to hear any of it until we get back, you hear me?”

 

“Will do!” Nora declared, giving Yang a playful salute. Ruby laughed at her antics, then with one final wave, the ramp closed. JNPR watched as the Javelin’s engines slowly activated, lifting off from the landing pad before rotating in mid-air and flying out of the Batcave.

 

“Good luck, guys,” Jaune whispered to himself, taking one final glance at the faint glow of the jet engines. Once it fully disappeared from view, he turned around and walked back upstairs with his team.

 

[~][~]


	35. HoJ Chibi Compilation 5 and Batcomputer Archive 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lost Opportunities the story proper wasn't able to show, Joker decides to steal Gotham's Christmas, and Batman writes Yang's file.

_*Happy, up-tuned, jingly version of Justice League theme*_

Hunters of Justice Chibi!

 

~

 

_Lost Opportunities_

 

~

 

**Revelations:**

 

“I’m not sure I want to do this anymore,” Yang admitted as Ruby wrapped the Lasso of Hestia around her wrist.

 

“Yang, we all did it,” Ruby pointed out, “even though it was…embarrassing.” The young huntress was still sheepish over her admission that, when she was young, she thought she had eye-lasers based off of a story her father and uncle told her. At the very least, Yang looked back on it happily.

 

“Besides,” Weiss stated with a small frown on her face as she pointed behind her, “I sincerely doubt that anything you admit to would be as revealing as Pyrrha. They still can’t look at each other and it’s been thirty minutes, the poor guys.”

 

“I’m sorry!” Pyrrha and Jaune apologized, briefly turning around to look at their friends only to catch a glimpse towards each other. Scarlet blushes filled their faces once again, and both immediately turned around to stare into the wall. Everyone looked at them with sympathy. Out of all the ways to find out that your best friend liked you more than just a friend, this was perhaps one of the worst ways for it to be discovered.

 

“You know, in hindsight Pyrrha’s actions make a lot more sense now,” Blake added, surprised at herself that she didn’t catch on beforehand. At the same time, her mind couldn’t help but drift towards the books she read in the middle of the night but forced herself not to dwell on them. The Faunus then shook her head, and gently took the lasso from Ruby’s hands.

 

“Ready?” she asked, wanting to make sure that Yang was comfortable. The blonde brawler glanced between all of them for a moment, then nodded. Blake nodded back, then thought of a question, one that wasn’t too revealing. Finally, she settled on one that she felt was innocent enough.

 

“What’s a silly fear you have?” Blake asked.

 

“Cuttlefish,” Yang immediately answered, throwing everyone for a loop. Even Jaune and Pyrrha took a break from their embarrassed sulking to stare at Yang in astonishment, who herself stared blankly back at everyone else.

 

The room was silent for a minute, then Nora softly said, “Cuttlefish?”

 

“Along with any other tentacled creature,” Yang added. Weiss narrowed her eyes and tilted her head.

 

“Why cuttlefish?” she asked.

 

“When I was, like, three, my mom and dad took me and Ruby down to the beach to swim. I ended up getting a cuttlefish attached to my head, and we couldn’t get it off as apparently it had its Aura activated. It took three hours, and they had to shave my head to get rid of it.”

 

Everyone digested that information slowly, then sympathetic looks crossed all of their faces.

 

“Yeah, I can see how that would be traumatic,” Ren admitted, and Yang gave him a solemn look.

 

“Yep. From then on, I knew that anything with tentacles was evil, and nothing will convince me otherwise.”

 

The teams nodded in understanding, then prepared to move on to the next victim. Before it could be decided, however, Blake’s ears twitched as she heard Wonder Woman mumble under her breath.

 

“Do not mention Starro…” Diana mumbled, the volume of her voice low enough so that none but Blake could hear her. The Faunus wondered who this ‘Starro’ was, but before she could even ask, she felt the lasso get gently wrapped around her own wrist.

 

“Blake, it’s your turn,” Ruby said with an encouraging smile.

 

“Joy,” Blake intoned, then mentally prepared herself.

 

“Alright, Blake. Easy question,” Weiss started and tapped her chin in thought. Ruby then felt the need to whisper a suggestion into Weiss’ ear, who shot a scandalous look towards her partner.

 

“Ruby! That is entirely inappropriate!”

 

“Oh, come on!” Ruby protested, but before Weiss could protest further, Blake spoke first.

 

“Diana,” Blake answered, causing everyone to look at her.

 

“Um, yes?” Wonder Woman asked, but Blake shook her head.

 

“No, that was the answer to Ruby’s question. She asked me who I thought the prettiest person I ever met was, and the answer to that was you.”

 

“Oh.” Wonder Woman looked at Blake for a moment, then warmly smiled. “Thank you, Blake. I’m honored.”

 

Blake felt a blush cross her face and looked away. At the same time, she saw that everyone else did the exact same, and at once they all knew that, for that specific question, they had the exact same answer. Even Weiss and Nora, who Blake knew for a fact were straight. Wonder Woman seemed to realize it as well, but instead of feeling offended, instead she only shook her head and laughed.

 

~

 

**Tongue-Twister:**

 

“Oh, who’s a good Silkie? You are! You are!” Weiss cooed to the alien slug, who chirped and squealed joyfully as the former heiress gently tossed him up and down. Ruby and Nora looked on happily, while Yang could barely contain her disgust.

 

“How can you possibly find him ‘cute?’” Yang asked, genuinely curious, only for Weiss to gasp in offense and hold Silkie close.

 

“Yang, how can you insinuate such travesties?!” Weiss demanded as Koriand’r joined her, a heavy pout on her face.

 

“Yes! The Silkie is the most adorable!” Koriand’r insisted, gently asking Weiss for Silkie back. Silkie squealed in excitement as he was handed back to his owner, and then held him up to Yang’s face. “Apologize to the Silkie.”

 

Yang looked at Silkie, who stared back then squealed and squirmed. He looked as though he wanted to hug her, and Yang shot a glance at the Tamaranean then back at Silkie. Finally, she sighed.

 

“I guess he’s kinda cute,” she admitted. Koriand’r smiled and floated upward in triumph, then gleefully handed Yang her pet.

 

“Here, you must hold him!” she declared, gently thrusting Silkie into Yang’s hands despite her feeble protests.

 

“No, no! I’m good, I—” Yang tried to stop her, only for Silkie to wind up in her arms anyway. She grimaced, even as Silkie made himself comfortable. “Ugh, he’s so slimy…”

 

“That is part of his charm!” Koriand’r clarified as the rest of Yang’s friends snickered about her situation. The ones paying attention, anyway. Blake was currently reading a book about a killer clown with Raven, Ren and Nora were making pancakes for breakfast, and Jaune was playing Super Smash Brothers with Garfield and Victor. Weiss, meanwhile, sat down on a chair and pulled out her scroll, intending to read the latest news article from the Daily Planet.

 

“ _Another interview with Superman to talk about climate change…_ ” Weiss mumbled in Vytalian. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Koriand’r give her a strange look, and Weiss realized why the alien girl might be confused. “Sorry, force of habit.”

 

“Don’t be,” Koriand’r insisted. “Tell me, was that your native language?”

 

“Yes, actually. Vytalian,” Weiss clarified. “It was Remnant’s equivalent of English and the most widely used language around the world.”

 

“Most fascinating! Oh, I love the learning of languages!” Koriand’r exclaimed, sitting down in a chair next to hers. Weiss chuckled, then remembered something from when they first arrived at the Watchtower.

 

“By the way, Kori, that reminds me. When we first arrived on Earth, none of us could speak English.”

 

“Oh yes, I heard of that. It must have been most confusing.”

 

“It was. Took almost a week to learn English, and that was only helped by J’onn’s mental prodding.”

 

M’gann perked up at the mention of her uncle, but soon went back to relaxing next to her brother, acting as his partner in Smash against the highly engaged team of Jaune and Victor.

 

“But, before they settled on that, I remember that they mentioned you by name,” Weiss continued, and Koriand’r looked confused.

 

“Me? Why would—” she paused, then her eyes widened in realization. “Oh, yes! I know why. Tamaraneans can learn languages almost instantaneously through contact with another.”

 

“That is certainly useful. Wonder why they didn’t ask you up…?” Weiss wondered. Koriand’r prepared to answer, only for Weiss to shake it off. “You know what, now I’m curious.”

 

“You are?” Koriand’r asked, slightly confused.

 

“Yes, actually. In fact, you can learn Vytalian from me.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Yes, really. Right now, if you want,” Weiss insisted, not understanding why Kori appeared to be so surprised. The Tamaranean thought it over for a moment, then smiled and nodded.

 

“Okay, only if you insist,” Koriand’r stated. “I will not do anything without your permission.”

 

“Kori, you have my permission.” Weiss was starting to get a little irritated now, but luckily Koriand’r finally seemed to get the message as she got up from her chair and made her way over. Nodding to herself, Weiss remained seated as she turned to face the Tamaranean.

 

“So, how exactly does this work?” Weiss asked, rising to her feet once Koriand’r got close, who then placed her hands on Weiss’ face. “Oh, I see! It works on physical—”

 

Weiss didn’t get the chance to finish her sentence as Koriand’r suddenly kissed Weiss fully on the lips. The world around her drowned out as activities ground to a halt. Vaguely, she thought she heard the clattering of plates and several gasps from all around. Then, almost as soon as it began, the kiss was over and Koriand’r parted from Weiss.

 

“ _Tamaraneans learn other languages through kissing,_ ” Koriand’r revealed in perfect Vytalian. Only now did Weiss see the shocked and surprised looks on everyone, but for the life of her Weiss couldn’t find it in her to truly react.

 

“…I see,” Weiss finally got out, only now understanding why the League decided against asking her up. Having a complete stranger kiss a highly traumatized teenager in an alien environment without any explanation would not have gone over well. Part of Weiss thought she should be offended, but most of her was just too surprised to really react. Same with the others, for that matter. Even the usually energetic Nora, who didn’t even try to pick up the scattered pancakes around her feet.

 

“Oh, you made pancakes! Most wonderful!” Koriand’r immediately flipped a switch back into English, happily floating towards the large tower waiting for her. “Oh, I can’t wait to fill all of my nine stomachs!”

 

The others, meanwhile, didn’t go for the pancakes. Instead their attention was divided between a paralyzed Weiss and Koriand’r, trying to figure out just how to respond. Finally, Ruby did and made her way towards her partner.

 

“Weiss? Weiss?!” Ruby tried to rouse her partner, but nothing seemed to register. “Oh gods, we’re losing her! Quick, here’s the Silkie! Hug the Silkie!”

 

Ruby desperately took Silkie and thrust it into Weiss’ still face, all the while the happy alien slug squirmed in Ruby’s hands and Koriand’r shoveled mustard-covered pancakes into her mouth.

 

~

 

**Rise of the Emoticlones:**

 

“Are you all ready?” Raven asked as teams RWBY and JNPR arranged themselves in a neat circle inside one of the rooms in the Watchtower.

 

“Yep,” Ruby insisted, honestly excited. After all, who else can say that they were about to meet the literal embodiments of their emotions? Well, besides Raven and her friends, of course. Raven nodded, then sat cross-legged in the middle of the circle. She began to chant and float, then purple lines glowed from within the circle. A faint miasma billowed upwards, then Ruby felt a twist and pull as though she was being sucked into a vacuum. When the sensation finally stopped, she found herself inside a perfect replica of Beacon Academy floating on a giant rock, the space around it filled with silver stars.

 

“So, this is the inside of my mind. Seems big. I must be smart,” Ruby noted with a hint of haughtiness.

 

“You know that the size of a mental landscape is not indicative of how smart a person is,” she heard someone respond. To her slight surprise, however, the voice was her own, although one with a slightly haughty and prideful tone. Ruby turned around to see a white-cloaked version of herself, holding an enlarged scroll in hand and sitting on a chair. Ruby began to feel positively giddy, recognizing that this must be one of her Emoticlones.

 

“Hello!” Ruby greeted herself. The white Emoticlone looked at her for a moment, then shut the scroll off and nodded back.

 

“Greetings. I am your Knowledge,” the white Emoticlone revealed.

 

“I thought knowledge was yellow?” Ruby pointed out, remembering Raven’s Knowledge Emoticlone.

 

“For Raven, yes. However, when you think of being smart, you automatically think of Weiss. I reflect that,” Knowledge explained. Ruby thought it over for a minute, then nodded.

 

“You know, that makes sense. You’re a pretty smart person.”

 

“I’m you. I only know what you know.”

 

“Oooh… Right,” Ruby intoned, then a moment of silence fell between them. “So, did you exist before I came in here or is this the first you’ve existed?”

 

“I honestly don’t know the answer to whether or not I always existed within your mind or if I was merely borne from the revelations found inside Raven’s mindscape.”

 

Ruby could feel a headache spring up from all these existential questions and felt that the more she talked to Knowledge the worse it would get. Yet, at the same time, she felt excited, then noticed a door leading outside. With a smile on her face, she walked over to Knowledge and took her in hand.

 

“Come, white-me! Let us unravel the mysteries of my mind!” Ruby proclaimed.

 

“Indeed. I am curious as well,” Knowledge stated, and a joyous Ruby began to skip towards the door. When she opened it, she found herself in the middle of the woods. Emerald pines grew high into the heavens, and scattered ruins dotted the landscape. Ruby recognized this place as the Emerald Forest, where she truly met the most important people in her life outside of her family. Where team RWBY and team JNPR were formed. A warm smile stretched across her face, and she breathed in deeply through her nose to smell the rich forest scents.

 

Ruby then heard the rustling of tree branches, and turned just as a yellow blur shot out towards her and tackled the young huntress to the ground.

 

“Eep!” Ruby shrieked in surprise, feeling a weight pressing down against her chest. She looked to see a yellow-cloaked Ruby standing above her, her boot pressing down against Ruby’s body while the Emoticlone herself was triumphantly placing her hands on her hips and smiling wide for all the world to see.

 

“Yeah! I win!” Yellow Ruby declared while Knowledge Ruby sighed and shook her head.

 

“Would you please get off her, please?” the white Emoticlone asked, and Yellow Ruby grinned as she did so.

 

“Oh, lighten up, will ‘ya? Where’s the fun in being stuffy all the time?” Yellow asked just as another Emoticlone revealed herself. This one was wearing purple and her face was apologetic.

 

“Sorry,” Purple Ruby said as she helped Ruby up.

 

“It’s fine, no big deal,” Ruby maintained, dusting herself off as she focused on the newcomers. Both the yellow and purple Emoticlones were looking at her, Yellow with a boisterous expression while purple looked as though she wanted to hide under a rock. Almost immediately, Ruby understood who they were.

 

“You,” Ruby started, pointing towards the yellow Emoticlone, “must be Bravery.”

 

“Yep!” Bravery declared, closing her eyes and giving the real Ruby a thumbs up. Ruby smiled and shook her head, then turned towards the skittish purple Emoticlone.

 

“And you must be my Timidity?” Ruby asked her, who shrunk back and nodded furiously.

 

“Yes! I’m sorry!” Timid apologized just as Bravery walked over and slapped her shoulder. Timid shrieked in surprise, then the next thing they knew she was high into a nearby tree, clutching a branch as tightly as she could.

 

“Come down, ‘ya scaredy cat!” Bravery demanded while Ruby and Knowledge simply looked at her.

 

“…Should I feel offended for Blake? But wait, if I associate being smart with Weiss and bravery with Yang, why do I…?” Ruby asked herself, and Timidity apologized.

 

“I’m sorry!”

 

Ruby sighed while Knowledge walked over to her.

 

“Timidity also represents loneliness, guilt, and insecurity,” Knowledge clarified. Ruby thought for a moment, then reluctantly nodded.

 

“Well, come on then! Let’s find the others!” Ruby ordered. Bravery was out first, stepping side-by-side with Ruby with a kick in her step, while Knowledge and Timidity followed behind her. They continued through the woods, passing by more and more trees and ruins before eventually coming across a stone archway. For whatever reason that only made sense in the deep reaches of her mind, there was a door housed within it, and Ruby opened the door to reveal the pristine streets of Vale. There were no people or cars around, making it feel quite empty, but at the same time she wasn’t entirely bothered by that.

 

“I wonder which one-OOF!” Ruby grunted as she walked face-first into something hard yet soft. There was a thud as Ruby stepped back, rubbing her nose to alleviate the pain, then began looking around for whatever she had walked into.

 

“What did…? Ruby asked herself, trying to find the Emoticlone, but saw nothing.

 

“Down here!” she heard a voice call out. Ruby looked down at her feet to see a green-cloaked Ruby laying on her back, looking up at them all with a wide smile. “Salutations! I am your Joy!”

 

“Yeah, I think she realized that, squirt,” another, gruffer voice that was somehow still her own stated. Everyone’s heads, even that of Joy’s, turned towards the source to see a dark red-cloaked Ruby stumble out of a bar while holding a flask in her hand.

 

“Really, at this hour?” Knowledge chastised, but the dark-red Emoticlone merely rolled her eyes and took another drink. “Ugh, you brute.”

 

“Don’t care,” Rudeness remarked, leaning against a building and continuing to drink from her flask. Ruby smiled and shook her head, recognizing her uncle’s antics in her Rudeness Emoticlone just as she recognized Penny’s in Joy. She then felt a pair of arms wrap tightly around her body, and Ruby looked to see a red, blue, and gold-cloaked Ruby embracing her.

 

“Hello," she greeted her, and Ruby laughed while embracing her in turn.

 

“You must be Love?”

 

“Indeed,” Love remarked in a gentle, silky tone. Ruby immediately felt that this Emoticlone reminded her of Wonder Woman, which made sense to her. Although she had only known Diana for a few months, already she could see just how passionate and loving she was to everyone she met.

 

Ruby mentally tallied whom she’d met insider her mind thus far. All she was missing now, assuming the Emoticlones in her mind matched those of Raven’s, were Rage and Sloth. For the life of her, she couldn’t figure out anyone who would match those emotions. None of the people she’d met in her life were particularly angry all the time, and all of her friends and family were very hard-working people. Was she, herself, even particularly lazy? She didn’t think she was, outside of a few cases where doing nothing just felt  _so good_.

 

“Hmm, well we should probably find the last two,” Ruby noted as she turned around to face the others. “Let’s go—”

 

Ruby stopped as she was suddenly face to face with a black cloaked Ruby staring her down. She shrieked in fright and burst back in a cloud of petals, allowing her to get  better look at the new Emoticlone. This one had an almost permanent scowl on her face, but what was most intriguing was the pair of pointed ears on top of her hood, which unlike the others was pulled up to shadow the upper half of her face.

 

“So…who are you?” Ruby asked, coming down from her fear-induced high.

 

“Anger,” the black Emoticlone revealed simply.

 

“Ah.” Ruby paused, then tilted her head. “I thought you’d be a lot more…explodey.”

 

“Not everyone’s anger is the same,” Knowledge reasoned. “Perhaps she represents a more…righteous anger?”

 

“Is that why she looks like Batman?”

 

“I would assume so, yes.”

 

“Ah. Neat.”

 

Anger said nothing, instead staring Ruby down for a few more seconds before turning to walk away. Timid was hiding behind Bravery while Joy and Passion were giggling to themselves over their fellow Emoticlone’s antics. Ruby chuckled to herself as well. Now that she thought about it, connecting Anger with Batman made a lot of sense. Then her thoughts drifted towards her final Emoticlone. What could she be? If her Anger was less Blind Rage and more Righteous Anger, did that necessarily mean that Sloth was her final Emotion? Come to think of it, could it possibly be something else entirely? As she ruminated in her thoughts, her eyes caught a glimpse of something flying towards them. Ruby turned towards it, and to her surprise saw a red-and-blue Emoticlone flying gracefully towards them. Unlike the others, Ruby understood exactly what this Emoticlone was supposed to represent, and a soft smile graced across her lips.

 

“Who’s that?” Bravery asked, placing her hands above her eyes to block out the sun as the figure hovered above them.

 

“Hope,” Ruby revealed as the red-and-blue cloaked Ruby smiled down on them. “She’s Hope.”

 

Hope said nothing, only nodding in affirmation. Ruby knew exactly who this Emoticlone was evocative of. After all, even after only knowing him for little over two months, she could honestly say that Superman embodied everything that Hope was supposed to be.

 

[~][~]

 

_How the Joker Stole Christmas_

~

 

The Joker scowled down towards Gotham City from the top of Amusement Mile. His arms were crossed, his brow furrowed, and he was entrapped in such a foul mood that none of his goons felt brave enough to even go near him. The last thing they wanted was to be subjected to his wrath. Except for Harley, that is, who seemed obvious to it.

 

“Merry Christmas, Mistah J!” Harley Quinn announced as she walked onto the balcony, wearing a green and red Santa costume that exposed her arms and legs to the frigid Gotham air. Atop her head was a pair of four-pointed antlers, each one lit like a candlestick. Without turning to face her, Joker’s scowl deepened, and he placed his white-gloved hands on the railing.

 

“Merry?” he rhetorically asked, leaning forward. “Harley, there’s nothing merry about this entire thing!”

 

“What do ‘ya mean?” Harley innocently asked, tilting her head.

 

“I mean, look at them!” Joker thrust his arm towards the city in emphasis. Harley did so, and her ears soon began to pick up the faint sounds of singing and caroling.

 

“Oh, that’s nice,” she cooed, but Joker shook his head violently.

 

“No, it’s not!” Joker insisted. “While they’re all down there, acting ‘merry’ with that stupid Christmas cheer, they’re completely ignoring the fact that I’ve broken out of Arkham!”

 

“You mean, you’re mad they’re not paying attention to you?” Harley asked, not honestly seeing where her lover was coming from.

 

“Yes!” Joker shouted whipping around to finally look at Harley. “It’s infur- Harley, what are you wearing?”

 

“Oh, this?” Harley gestured to herself with a  beaming smile, happy that the Joker finally noticed. She picked it out partially for him, after all. “Ya see, my mom was Catholic, and my dad was Jewish. So, we celebrated both Christmas _and_ Hanukah!”

 

Joker narrowed his eyes. A biting comment was on the tip of his tongue, but when he heard a fresh round of caroling, he sighed and turned away.

 

“Ugh, I just can’t today. Not on Christmas Eve,” he said, glaring at Gotham once again and missing Harley Quinn’s disappointed frown.

 

“You know, Mistah J, you’re acting like a real Grinch right now,” Harley remarked. As her words registered in Joker’s head, he got an idea. An awful idea. The Joker got a wonderful, awful idea.

 

“You’re right, Harley,” the Joker replied, sending Harley aback slightly.

 

“I am?” she asked, not used to hearing him say that. Joker then turned his head towards Harley and smiled, baring his yellow teeth to the world.

 

“Yes. I am being a Grinch right now, and now I know just what to do.”

 

“…Why do I feel like I’m not going to like where this is going?”

 

~

 

Harley was right. She didn’t like where this was going. Not one bit, as the Joker took her critique to heart and decided to fully become a Grinch. The Clown Prince of Crime was wearing a freshly made (by her, of course) Santa Claus costume, complete with red and white suit, hat, and a thick, bushy, white beard. Still wearing her Hanukah-Christmas outfit, Joker placed a big red nose on her own to make her look more like a reindeer. For a moment, when the Joker brought out an actual sleigh, Harley was worried he’d make her pull the thing. But, luckily, the Joker wasn’t willing to go that far. Mostly because time was of the essence. He did make her drive it, though.

 

“Let’s go, dear Harley, and stop Christmas from coming!”

 

Harley almost didn’t want to ask, but she felt she had to at the same time. “How are we gonna do that, Mistah J?”

 

“Why I’ll steal it, of course! Their presents, decorations, food and all!” Joker gleefully announced. “I’ll show them to forget about me, even for one night!”

 

“…Alright, puddin’, if you say so,” Harley said. She started the sleigh’s engines, which to her slight surprise made a jingle-like sound that masked the engine’s roar. Amusement Mile’s garage door opened, and then both supervillains were off. With all the Gothamites nestled all snug in their beds, the streets were remarkably clean of anyone to stand in Joker’s way. He stopped at the first house, standing upright on his sleigh’s seat, and quickly scaled the fire escape to the chimney top.

 

“Hmm,” Joker said as he stared down the small chimney. “Well, if fat old Saint Nick can do it, then so can I!”

 

With that declaration, Joker inserted himself into the chimney and scaled down. When he emerged through the fireplace, he was greeted by a well-decorated room filled with gaudy Christmas cheer. A great, big Christmas tree, covered in shiny ornaments glistened in the moonlight, while wreaths and garlands lined the walls. Presents, both big and small, sat under the tree, and sitting quietly on top of a small table was a plate filled with cookies and a glass of milk. Joker quietly cackled to himself, rubbing his hands together, then pulled out a large sack.

 

As quickly as he could, the Joker stuffed the presents away. He stuffed the garlands and the wreaths, the lights and even the trees. Before long, the entire room was completely empty, leaving only traces of the decorations that once remained. Joker laughed hysterically as he ate all the cookies and drank the milk, then went back up the chimney with his spoils in tow, and once he was back on top of the roof he threw the bag onto the back of his sleigh. Harley, exasperated more than anything, carefully loaded them into the back, then waited as Joker made his way back down to the sleigh.

 

“Onward, Harley! To the next house!”

 

For the rest of the night, until the wee hours of the morning, the Joker and Harley Quinn broke into each and every apartment and abode in Gotham City. Every business, office and more was stripped bare of anything relating to Christmas or holiday cheer. There was only one house left, the grand Wayne Manor on the outskirts of town, and Joker couldn’t help but laugh to himself while rubbing his hands. Harley, meanwhile, could only eye the absolute mountain of stolen goods piled in the back of the sleigh warily, worried that a single breeze or bump in the road would send it all crashing down. She also didn’t know how, exactly, they managed to rob every single home and business in Gotham in one night, but at this point she was too afraid to ask.

 

Once they were parked, Joker quickly scaled Wayne Manor and shimmied down the chimney. As with all the other homes, Wayne Manor was completely filled with Christmas decorations, only these were far more expensive. Joker was half inclined to simply rob the place normally, but he shook his head and stopped himself. This wasn’t for money, it was to send a message. He’d rob this place later.

 

The presents went first, followed by the lights, wreaths, and garlands. Joker tiptoed through the manor, stealing everything he could see that reminded him of Christmas.

 

‘ _Jeez, I should’ve guessed a rich guy like Bruce Wayne would go all in on Christmas. A lot of bats, though, which is weird. Richie Rich too lazy to take down his Halloween decorations?_ ’ Joker thought to himself as he finished his dastardly work. All that was left now was the Christmas tree, which was the largest he’d seen all night.

 

“Alright, up you go,” Joker said as he lifted the tree off its base and tried to stuff it up the chimney. The tree was so large that Joker was having some issue, and he grunted and puffed out his cheeks as he tried to finish the job. So consumed by his work, that he didn’t hear the faint sound of a door being opened, and a pair of small feet walking down the stairs until it was too late.

 

“Santa?” Joker stopped as a young girl’s voice called out to him. He turned around fast, and he saw a young girl. Little Ruby Rose, who was rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

 

“Santa Claus, why?” Ruby asked innocently. “Why are you taking our Christmas tree, why?”

 

Joker began to panic, but since he was so smart and so slick, he thought of a lie real quick.

 

“Why, my sweet little tot,” Joker lied, “there’s a light on this tree that just won’t light on one side. So, I’m taking it home to my workshop, my dear. So, I’ll fix it up there, then I’ll bring it back here.”

 

“You do that?” Ruby asked. “I hadn’t heard that. Although, I haven’t been here for long, so maybe I just didn’t get to that part yet. Okay, then.”

 

Having fooled the child, Joker patted her head, then got her a drink then sent her to bed. When she was out of sight, Joker sighed to himself and walked back to the tree.

 

“Cute kid,” he muttered. “Dumb, but cute.”

 

With that, Joker grabbed hold of the tree one last time, then finally inserted it into the chimney with him following suit.

 

~

 

The Joker laughed at his mountain of Christmas cheer now laying sprawled across the floor of his lair. His goons laughed alongside him, while Harley Quinn merely sat disappointed in a chair across the room. Not that he stole the presents, but that he simply wasn’t paying attention to her again.

 

“I must say, I think I’ve outdone myself this time, boys!” Joker announced to the roar of approval from his goons. “Now, let’s see just what all we’ve got here.”

 

Hopping down from atop his sleigh, Joker grabbed a present and began to open it.

 

“Ugh, socks? How boring are socks as a gift? I feel sorry whoever ‘Jim’ is.” Joker threw the box away, then opened another. “Ooh, a gift certificate! What a perfectly unimaginative gift that someone probably won’t use.”

 

As the sun began to rise, Joker continued to open each and every gift he could find. He saw toys and games, books and another lames. Above all, he was finding the stolen gifts to be quite disappointing if not boring. Where was the imagination? And what was with all the clothes and piles of money? Especially the money. No thought went into that, in his eyes.

 

“Well, now this is interesting,” Joker announced as he ripped the wrapping paper off of a particularly large box with one side covered in clear plastic. “Someone got someone else a life-sized statue of Batman. That was thoughtful.”

 

“Who’s it for, boss?” a goon asked. Joker turned his back to the gift and reached for the discarded wrapping paper, searching it for names.

 

“Ah, here it is,” Joker announced. “It says, ‘To: The Joker.’ Well, that’s peculiar. Who would’ve…?”

 

Joker stopped, the hairs on the back of his head standing on end as his eyes widened in realization.

 

“Ooh,” Joker said just as the head of the Batman statue turned to face him. The Clown Prince of Crime couldn’t even react as the apparent statue sprang to life, erupting out of the box, and grabbed Joker by the neck,

 

“Hey, Bats,” Joker replied as Batman bored his white eyes into Joker’s vibrant green. “Merry Christmas!”

 

~

 

“I can’t believe that worked,” Weiss muttered to herself as she watched the spectacle before her.

 

“Believe it, bestie!” Ruby announced proudly, happy that the plan she concocted with Batman worked perfectly.

 

“More importantly, I can’t believe you fell for the Joker’s disguise,” Weiss chastised with a narrow glare. Ruby, meanwhile, met Weiss’ gaze with her own and smiled knowingly.

 

“Did I, though? Did I?” Ruby asked. Weiss moved to respond, only to pause and hum to herself. As she brought her hand to her chin and looked away, deep in thought, Ruby pumped her fist in victory and did a little celebratory dance. The others watched in silence as everyone in Gotham lined up to get their presents back from a heavily bruised and beaten Joker, Batman and Commissioner Gordon standing beside him to keep careful watch. Harley, at least, was giddy about the entire thing, even with a rather large black eye. She was even wearing a custom-made elf costume.

 

“Merry Christmas, everyone!” Harley announced before pulling out another set of presents to give to the next person in line. Joker said nothing, but he felt Batman and Gordon’s mutual glares,  and scowled petulantly.

 

“Merry Christmas,” he grumbled, and Batman lightly smiled.

 

 [~][~]

 

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**~**

Name: Yang Xiao Long

Age: 18

Species: Remnantian

Alias: Golden Dragon

Equipment: Ember Celica, a pair of 12-gauge shotgun gauntlets capable of collapsing into bracelets for concealment and maneuverability. She uses these gauntlets to both fire at short to medium range as well as enhance the strength of her punches, usually in conjunction with various types of Dust. With both teams RWBY and JNPR’s Dust stores having been rendered inert during transit to Earth, Yang has begun to modify Ember Celica to compensate. Improvement process is ongoing, but currently includes the addition of a slug-round functionality, micro-rocket launcher, and integrated grappling claws.

Semblance: Damage Absorption – Yang can absorb the damage to her body from her opponents, with the energy stored within her Aura for later use. At a moment of her choosing, Yang can then add that energy to her own physical blows, greatly enhancing her strength. She does feel the blow’s effects, however, as her Aura does not nullify the pain the attack would have otherwise inflict. Nor does it work while she is asleep or otherwise unconscious. (Note: Yang has personally referred to her Semblance as “Rage”, however given its effects, I felt that “Damage Absorption” was the more accurate terminology)

Bio: The first born daughter to Taiyang Xiao Long and Raven Branwen, two members of the illustrious team STRQ, which included Yang’s uncle, Qrow Branwen, and Ruby’s mother/team leader, Summer Rose. Shortly after the team’s graduation from Beacon Academy, Taiyang and Raven got married, at which time Yang was conceived and eventually born. However, shortly after this event and for currently unknown reasons, Raven Branwen left her fledgling family to return to the Branwen Tribe, a group of bandits operating in the kingdom of Mistral (revealed to Yang during the final stages of the _Fall of Remnant_ ). This event nearly broke Taiyang, until Summer Rose stepped in to pick up the pieces, which led to Ruby being born.

For much of her early life, Yang saw Summer as her biological mother, until her death, at which point the truth was revealed. Determined to get answers, Yang began setting off to find Raven. On the first of these excursions, a young Yang and Ruby were attacked by creatures of Grimm, but were luckily saved by Qrow Branwen, who had been following them the entire time. This event shaped Yang, leading to her eventual decision to follow in her father’s and uncle’s footsteps to become a Huntress, both to explore the world and help people along the way. At the same time, she never ceased her search for Raven Branwen, attempting to gain answers as to why she and her father were abandoned all those years before.

Strengths:

Physical Strength and Durability: Yang is, by far, the strongest individual member of teams RWBY and JNPR. Her current bench press record is 22-tons, and her Aura is large enough to absorb the impact of being thrown through a concrete pillar as well as surviving an impact at terminal velocity.

Emotional Intelligence: Yang’s ability to read her teammate’s emotions is extremely adept, especially for an individual at her age. Her boisterous and outgoing personality masks a level of maturity the others don’t always exhibit and has proven to be a nurturing influence towards others, especially towards her younger half-sister, Ruby.

Unarmed Combat: Yang’s unarmed combat is the best among her peers, which is a natural byproduct of her fighting style. Her primary style is akin to Earth boxing and kick boxing mixed with wrestling, muay thai, and karate, but after arriving on Earth, she has begun to incorporate other various martial arts. These include krav maga, judo, and taekwondo.

Cunning: Yang is capable of a surprising amount of deception towards her opponents, capable of luring them into a position that best advantages her. This was best exemplified during her fight against Oswald Cobblepot’s men and Bane, in which she purposefully kept her Semblance a secret in order to bait Bane into letting his guard down while also storing the energy accumulated from her opponents. This allowed her to ultimately defeat Bane.

Weaknesses:

Anger: Yang is, unfortunately, a hot-blooded individual. While this anger can and has resulted in bursts of increased strength, it has also led to rash decision making and predictable actions. Should an opponent manage to rile her up and she lets her temper take control, her behavior becomes stubborn and predicable.

Semblance Limitations: As mentioned before, Yang’s Semblance does not reduce the pain or damage she takes, nor does it decrease the amount of Aura lost in absorbing said damage. Also, her Semblance is akin to a one-shot weapon. Should she miss, all of the energy is expelled, which would force her to have to reaccumulate. If she had lost enough Aura beforehand, this could leave her at a severe disadvantage.

Abandonment Issues: Yang has long-stemming abandonment issues, pertaining back to when her mother abandoned her as a newborn infant, and further compounded by the death of Summer Rose and her father’s depression, and more recently by Brainiac’s destruction of Remnant. She is terrified of losing the people she loves, or more accurately them leaving her behind. This often results in lashes of anger, which can reduce her combat effectiveness and decision making.

Long Range Combat: Although Yang’s CQB is second-to-none among her teammates, her long-range options leave much to be desired. Enemies armed with sniper rifles, marksman rifles, or any other long-range weapon could theoretically whittle her Aura down before she ever got the chance to close the distance. Fast, airborne enemies are particularly challenging for her to combat directly.

Areas for Training:

Long-Range Combat Enhancement: In order to cover all potential areas of confrontation, Yang needs to improve upon her long-range capabilities. This can take a variety of forms, such as a secondary weapon, various gadgets, or a combination thereof.

Anger Management: Yang needs to be able to control her anger before it causes her to make a costly decision. Further sessions with M’gann M’orzz or any other League-affiliated specialist should suffice.

Martial Arts Training: Should continue to teach Yang more Earth-based martial arts, both furthering her understanding of what she already knows as well as expanding her repertoire of known techniques.

Semblance Limitation Countermeasures: Combination of both Semblance Training as well as Limitation Mitigation. Training can include learning to channel smaller amounts of absorbed damage into lesser-but-frequent counterattacks, opportune moment recognition, and when to dodge or absorb. Mitigation can include enhancements to super-suit armor systems, such as an impact-absorbing gel layer, impact dispersing microfilaments, and more. Further study of the dynamics her Semblance operates under may be necessary.

**~**

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Strategy for Subdual:

Should Yang Xiao Long be placed under mind-control or otherwise forced into opposition against the League, priority should be to engage her at long range. Her ability to fight far-away opponents is limited by her weapons and fighting style, and should one keep her away long enough to whittle her Aura down, she should soon follow. As with the other Remnantians, removing her Aura remains a top priority.

Should she manage to close the distance however, strong and heavy blows will only increase her Semblance’s power. Instead, CQB should focus on light, fast attacks punctuated by dodging her own blows. Yang has experienced difficulty in fighting opponents faster than her, such a fight against Neo Politan, a mute associate of the Valean gangster, Roman Torchwick, onboard a train. Neo managed to dodge Yang’s attacks while countering with her own, which eventually whittled Yang’s Aura down completely and knocked her out. Had Yang’s mother (suspected, not confirmed) not intervened at that time, Yang would have died.

Still, a fight against Yang carries significant probability of several of her attacks managing to land. As such, enhancements must be made to the Batsuit’s impact absorption. Addition of a gel-layer should suffice, as well as padding along the joints to prevent damage. Armor component of Project: HUNTER-BAT still underway, and addition of internal servos to increase strength to match Aura’s natural strength enhancement should increase odds of success.

[~][~]


	36. No Haven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> RWBY, Green Arrow, and Black Canary travel to the ruins of Bludhaven, only for their plans to go awry thanks to the League of Shadows and dark interlopers looming in their midst.

** Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC) **

** Chapter 26: No Haven **

~

_November 14 th, 6:00 AM_

_10,000 feet above Ruins of Blüdhaven_

With the tip of her tongue poking out of the corner of her mouth, Ruby sat on one of the side seats inside the Javelin and remained focused on the scroll held in her hand. She was playing a game to pass the time as they flew from Gotham to Blüdhaven, a trip that wouldn’t normally take too long, but they were taking a longer route in order to try and thwart any would-be sensors the League of Shadows might’ve emplaced. They doubted anything bad would happen, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

Not that Ruby minded. In fact, she appreciated the fact that they were taking their time. She was almost about the beat the latest Gym, and this fight was proving to be excitingly difficult.

“Come on, Nox. You can do it,” Ruby muttered under her breath as she ‘ordered’ her Zubat to use a Poison Sting on Misty’s Staru. Wondering what Ruby was so focused on, Weiss leaned over to get a closer look, then scoffed and rolled her eyes.

“Why Zubats are your favorite Pokémon is beyond me,” Weiss stated in a joking tone, causing Ruby to break her attention away from her game to lightly glare at Weiss.

“Oh yeah? Then what’s yours?” Ruby asked, certain that Weiss wouldn’t be able to provide a satisfactory answer.

“Ralts,” Weiss answered immediately. Ruby’s retort vanished on her lips, and she thought for a moment. Weiss saw this and smirked lightly. “What, so I can’t enjoy a nice game, too?”

“No, no, that’s not what I…” Ruby stopped, then took a deep breath and sighed while Weiss giggled. “Anyway, I just like the Zubat line. I think they’re neat.”

“I like Torchics!” Yang added with a chuckle from the copilot’s seat as Green Arrow helped guide her along. The heroes figured that, with all the practice Yang had been getting, now was a good time to get some actual flight experience on her belt. One by one, the unoccupied members of Team RWBY turned their heads to look at Blake, who was silently reading a book on her scroll to pass the time. Her ears twitched as she finally noticed the attention she was getting, and upon glancing up to see everyone looking at her, she sighed and placed her scroll on her lap.

“If you must know, Gastly,” Blake quickly answered, then turned back to her book. Ruby smiled, then turned back to her game. Weiss chuckled, then sat straight on her chair once again.

“Try to hurry up, Ruby. We’re almost there,” Weiss said, and Ruby quickly nodded, her gaze never leaving her scroll.

“I know, I know. I’m almost done,” Ruby replied, her fingers bouncing off the buttons as fast as she could go. Satisfied with her partner’s answer, Weiss looked around the cabin towards the various monitors detailing their current location. They were several hundred feet above Blüdhaven, hidden well within the thick layer of clouds that seemed to hang perpetually over the entire area. Shown as thin blue lines, topography maps of Blüdhaven were displayed, showing ruined buildings and bombed-out structures. Time had not been kind to the city, that much was certain.

More importantly to the former heiress, she focused on the distinct lack of heat signatures that would indicate a human presence in the city ruins. It was as though Blüdhaven was truly abandoned, but now she and the others had ample reason to find that suspect. There were obviously some kind of jammers down in the ruins, blocking any attempts to peek inside, which was the primary reason why they hadn’t begun their insertion.

“Anything yet, Arrow?” Black Canary asked as she walked over to lean against the back of Green Arrow’s chair.

“Sensors can’t find any SAM sites or anti-air guns. We’re safe, for now, but I don’t like it,” Green Arrow replied, a small frown crossing his face. The older, experienced superhero felt his instincts screaming at him, but so long as they stayed above the cloud layer, they should be fine. Still, they had to set down eventually, otherwise this entire mission would be a waste.

“We’ll stay up for another five minutes, then we’ll find a safe place to land,” Green Arrow finally said. His girlfriend and partner nodded, then walked back towards the cabin to take a seat next to Blake and opposite Weiss. The air was silent for a moment, outside of the dull hum of jet engines rumbling outside, and Blake felt her attention slowly shift from her book towards Black Canary. The elder blonde noticed this almost immediately, and chuckled.

“What, cat got your tongue?” Black Canary joked. Upon seeing Blake’s unamused stare, Black Canary suddenly remembered a key detail about Blake’s heritage and winced. “Wait, sorry.”

After a moment, Blake sighed. “No, it’s fine.” The Faunus attempted to turn her attention back to her book, but now she found that she couldn’t. A question she’d been meaning to ask was wracking her brain, and it wouldn’t let her rest. Finally, with a sigh, she saved her progress and closed her scroll. Blake figured it was time to put it away, anyway, so instead she turned her attention towards Black Canary.

“Actually, I have a question,” Blake stated.

“Shoot,” Black Canary replied, cracking her neck in anticipation.

“When we first met,” Blake began, “you…screamed at us with enough force to shatter glass. Was that your metagene?”

“Yes, actually,” Black Canary answered with a smile. “I call it my Canary Cry. It’s about ten times stronger than the strongest sonic weapons currently on the market. Could bend steel, if I wanted to. But, doing that makes my throat hurt like hell, so I don’t do it often.”

“I bet.” Blake winced, not wanting to imagine the condition of a person’s throat after screaming that powerfully yet still doing so. The Faunus then cleared her throat and turned back towards Black Canary. “If you don’t mind me asking, how’d you awaken them?”

“Actually, I was born with them,” Black Canary answered. Seeing the younger girl’s confused expression, Black Canary smiled and shook her head. “Here’s the thing about the metagene, Blake. It’s not always random. Sometimes, they can be passed on. For me, my Canary Cry came from my mother, the first Black Canary.”

“Oh, so the metagene can be inherited?” Weiss asked, perking up and giving rapt attention to the discussion at hand. “Just like my family’s Semblance. I take it it’s not common?”

“Depending on what it is,” Black Canary admitted. “Even then, it’s not always guaranteed that the inherited powers are exactly like the parents’. You know Black Lightning?”

“Yes, but not in any significant way,” Weiss replied, and Black Canary nodded.

“Well, he has two daughters around your age, both of whom inherited his powers. But theirs are completely different. His eldest, Thunder, can alter density at will, while his youngest, Lightning, can generate electricity. He himself can only manipulate, store, and alter electricity. Goes to show that metahumans are a wild and varied bunch.”

“You’re telling me,” Blake said. “Honestly, some of the powers and mutations people have on this planet make the wildest Semblances on Remnant seem tame.”

“I’ve actually been putting some thought into that,” Weiss pointed out. “About the power discrepancy between the humans of Earth and Remnantians. Both species have a similar biology and even access to a metagene, which if I remember correctly, was previously exclusive only to Earth, correct?”

“Yeah, that’s right. The other species in the galaxy that have fantastic powers tend to have a universal set while humans are much, much more varied and rarer,” Black Canary clarified, and Weiss nodded.

“Yes, just what I thought. Regardless, I can’t help but compare and contrast the powers of Earth and the powers Remnant.”

“And? Don’t leave us hanging, Weiss-Cream,” Yang called out. “Also, Ruby? Get off your game. We’re about to drop below the cloud layer.”

“Alright, just let me save,” Ruby said, beating the Gym Leader and quickly pressing through the dialogue so that she could save and power off without losing progress.

“Anyway,” Weiss continued, “I’ve found that the best comparison I can make between Remnant and Earth is that of two neighboring peaks on a mountain. One, Earth, is much narrower and starts lower on the mountain, yet extends high into the sky. The other, Remnant, is much broader and starts higher up, but the peak doesn’t go as far as Earth’s.”

“I think I see what you mean,” Black Canary hummed, rubbing her chin while leaning forward. “So, what you’re saying is that while Remnant had a lot more people capable of having powers and the baseline was much higher than Earths, the upper-levels of Earth were much greater than that of Remnant’s?”

“Precisely.” Weiss nodded, then raised a solitary finger. “Not including Superman, Martian Manhunter, or any other alien who calls Earth home, nothing on Remnant compared to the strongest heroes and villains Earth has to offer. I suspect the Grimm were the cause of the power discrepancy, in some form or fashion. I don’t have any evidence to back it up, but I wouldn’t be surprised if, at one point in Remnant’s history, we were extremely similar to Earth and its people. Then, when the Grimm attacked, only the people with the Aura metagene survived to have kids, drowning out any other potential metagene sources that could’ve been there. Eventually, everyone on Remnant could have Aura, and while that in and of itself provided many strengths and variations, it potentially excluded us from many other sources of power.”

“Hm, interesting,” Black Canary murmured. “Next time you see J’onn, try bringing this up with him. He loves this kind of stuff.”

Weiss smiled. “Thank you, I think I will.” The heiress moved to continue their discussion, only for Ruby to suddenly shout.

“Got it!” Ruby said, smiling happily while pocketing her scroll in her HAZMAT suit’s pocket. Upon seeing the slightly exasperated looks on her teammates’ faces, Ruby cheekily smiled and tilted her head. “I am now saved.”

“Good,” Weiss dryly replied, rolling her eyes. “Glad that’s all—”

Weiss was stopped when an alarm began to blare from inside the Javelin’s cockpit. The superheroes shot their attention towards it, and a second later, a loud explosion went off in front of the aircraft.

“Damn!” Green Arrow cursed as he swerved the aircraft away from the anti-aircraft fire. “Yang, get in back! Canary, get over here!”

Without saying a word, Yang jumped out of her seat just as Black Canary ran over and sat herself down. AA fire continued to explode around them, occasionally joined by a few missiles that they had to roll away from.

“What’s going on?” Ruby asked, sealing her helmet onto her suit and strapping herself into her seat as her teammates did the same.

“The League of Shadows,” Blake said quietly, flinching as more explosions sounded around them. “It was a trap the whole time. They were waiting for us.”

“Yeah, no shit!” Yang sarcastically replied, loading Ember Celica in anticipation of a fight breaking out as soon as they landed. If they landed, she had to remind herself as the Javelin continued to dodge. During a particularly heavy swerve, Yang and the rest of Team RWBY held onto their chairs tightly despite their safety harnesses. Even then, they felt the g-forces press against their bodies, and they all grunted in discomfort.

“We’ve got missiles locking onto us!” Green Arrow shouted over the chaos, trying to escape with the Javelin intact. The sound of bullets ripping through the Javelin’s wings were telling him that wasn’t happening.

“Launching flares!” Black Canary replied, watching as yet another missile veered off course and exploded harmlessly in the atmosphere. To her alarm, the explosion was much closer this time, and they didn’t have very many flares left. Green Arrow noticed this as well, and he scowled deeply.

“Girls, secure yourselves! We’re aborting!” Green Arrow called out. Yang wanted to protest, but as another shockwave rocked their vessel, she knew it was the right call. She didn’t have to be happy about it, though.

The Javelin began to rapidly climb towards the layer of clouds above. AA-fire and missiles trailed after them, trying to shoot the League aircraft down. Green Arrow and Black Canary bobbed and weaved to the best of their ability, but the field of shrapnel was too great. The jet engines became riddled with holes and the thrust began to sputter. Despite increasing their throttle, the engines slowly failed, and as though in slow motion, Yang watched as a lone missile moved towards them. At the last second, Black Canary and Green Arrow rotated the Javelin, causing the missile to strike the wing and shred it off.

They began to freefall, rotating horizontally in a death spiral as small objects flew around the cabin. Green Arrow and Black Canary tried to maintain control, but to no avail. The Javelin was going to crash, taking them down with it. From behind their helmets, Team RWBY shot each other quick glances, then all nodded at once.

“Arrow, Canary, come on! We’re leaving!” Ruby shouted as she unhooked herself from her seat. Immediately, her body flew off the seat and struck the ceiling, but she was able to get a grip on a cupboard and prevent herself from flailing all over the place. From her position, she saw Weiss stabilize herself and Yang with her Glyphs, while Blake nimbly scaled the walls of the aircraft to help Green Arrow and Black Canary move towards them.

“Where’s your parachutes?” Black Canary asked, grabbing her helmet as it flew towards her and putting it on her head in one deft motion. Green Arrow did the same, and silently Blake had to admit the maneuver was impressive.

“No time,” she admitted. “We’re going to jump.”

“Are you insane?!” Green Arrow barked. “From this height?!”

“No, and yes.” Despite the situation they were in, Blake couldn’t help but smirk. “Don’t worry, this isn’t our first landing strategy.”

“The fact that you people _name_ this is concerning!” Black Canary noted, and Yang grinned.

“That’s the spirit!” she exclaimed, moving herself towards an emergency release hatch. They watched as the altitude continued to drop. Three-hundred feet, then two-hundred feet. Finally, when the altimeter read one-hundred feet off the ground, Yang pulled the hatch, causing the door to explode from its hinges and shoot way. The heroes, already placed in front of the door, immediately jumped out one by one. Soon, six multi-colored bodies were in freefall, rapidly descending towards the ruins below. AA fire continued to trace the crashing aircraft, and to their relief, none seemed to notice them.

“There!” Ruby pointed towards a ruined apartment complex. From what they could see, nothing was firing out of it, making it appear to be an ideal landing zone. Nothing about their landing strategy was ideal, of course, but Ruby preferred to look at the brighter side of things. Around her, the heroes focused their attention on Ruby’s chosen spot, and each stated their agreement towards the site. They angled their bodies towards it and formed a slight arrow-shape. A dull explosion sounded behind them, revealing that the Javelin had crashed, but they forced themselves not to pay attention.  

When they got close, each hero reacted differently. Ruby spread her cape wide, allowing her to wobblily glide towards their destination. Blake, meanwhile, threw her grapnel towards a nearby outcropping, allowing her to swing to a gentle stop after several quick steps. Yang, grinning to herself, did a similar action to her partner, firing multiple grappling hooks to slow her descent considerably. Had her Dust rounds been available, she would’ve simply used the recoil to redirect her descent, but nothing on Earth was that powerful yet.

Weiss, meanwhile, gracefully formed a series of platforms that both slowed her descent and allowed her to bounce to safety. Black Canary, spreading her arms and legs wide, shouted at the top of her lungs towards the ground, the sound waves pushing back against her body and slowing her enough to where she was able to land onto the ground with a roll. She landed on her feet, and soon she spotted Green Arrow firing a line arrow into a building both in front of him and behind at the same time. He was using his bow as a zip line, using his momentum to carry up the line at first, then he began to slow down and reverse towards the ground below.

One by one, each hero landed on the ground, immediately pulling out their weapons and scanning the area for any signs of movement. They found none, then regrouped and panted heavily. Their eyes made contact from behind their polarized helmets, and RWBY could feel the inquisitive looks the older heroes were giving them.

“So,” Yang finally said after a momentary pause, “how was your first landing strategy?”

“… Fine, all things considered,” Green Arrow admitted. He took another look around the ruined building, then frowned. “Let’s find a better spot. One that’s less…exposed.”

~

Green Arrow watched as another patrol of assassins ran through the streets. They were clad in black protective gear, obviously meant to shield them from the harmful effects of radiation, and each had their clandestine organization’s logo stamped into the material. It was a pointed, horned skull encased in a circle, and as with the rest of their armor, was completely black. Had it not been for his own suit’s optics, he doubted he would’ve seen it in the first place.

‘ _Why so many criminal organizations feel the need to have brand recognition is beyond me,_ ’ Green Arrow thought, shaking his head while bringing his bow to his chest. He pulled back on the string, an arrow nocked and ready to fire as soon as the patrol even thought about turning towards them.

“ _Second Blade, report,_ ” Green Arrow’s suit picked up the League’s transmission. The patrol stopped, and the apparent leader brought his finger to his head while lowering his suppressed rifle to his hip.

“ _Lady Shiva, there’s no sign of them,_ ” he reported. That was good, it meant they hadn’t spotted them yet. “ _Shall we continue our search?_ ”

“ _Indeed, you shall. But not where you presently are. Continue to sector nine,_ ” Lady Shiva’s voice came through the comms channel. Green Arrow frowned. Lady Shiva was one of the League of Shadow’s top assassins. If she was here, that meant this operation was of critical importance. If getting shot down wasn’t proof enough, this was the clincher.

“ _Yes, my Lady._ ” The assassin’s comms shut off, and with a quick series of nods, the assassins ran off, nimbly bouncing from various surfaces towards the rooftops across from them and out of sight. Only when Green Arrow could no longer see or hear them did he finally relax, letting out a breath he didn’t even know he was holding. He released the tension in his bow, then stepped back into the ruined apartment complex and walked back towards his comrades.

With their Javelin shot down on the other side of the city, the heroes had managed to find a relatively safe haven in a bombed-out apartment complex. The words ‘Arcadia Commons’ could be seen in faded outlines where a neon sign once stood. Green Arrow couldn’t help but sigh. As much as he acknowledged that Blüdhaven, back when it was still a thing, was one of the worst cities to live in, it was still home to thousands of people. It had existed for centuries, and in less than a day, it was gone. Wiped off the map and completely lifeless. It was a damn tragedy.

Still, he couldn’t ruminate on the past. Right now, he had a job to do.

“Any luck on talking to the Watchtower?” Green Arrow asked. Crouching in a corner, Weiss and Black Canary shook their heads, their fingers pressed tightly to the sides of their heads.

“Nothing,” Weiss said. “We’re being jammed, that much is obvious.”

“Why hasn’t the League sent people down here yet?” Yang asked. “It’s been almost an hour since we were shot down.”

“If I had to guess,” Black Canary began, “it’s the very same jammers that are blocking our communications. The Watchtower might not even know we’ve been shot down. Even then, I wouldn’t be surprised if the jammers and the radiation is playing havoc on the teleporter.”

“So, what you’re saying is that we’re alone?” Blake asked. When Black Canary nodded, the Faunus frowned and looked away. Clenching her fist, she stood up and walked towards Ruby, who herself was laying prone next to a shattered window. Ruby was looking through her scope, scanning for any signs of activity, but so far she found nothing.

“Ruby?” Blake called out. “You find anything?”

“Nope,” Ruby replied, popping the ‘p’. “Can’t tell yet if that’s good or bad yet.”

“How so?”

“I mean, obviously them shooting at us is bad and all, but if they were, we might be able to figure out what to do next.”

Blake paused, the nodded. “That’s fair.”

The Faunus then turned back to face the others. Despite their helmets masking their expressions, Blake knew they were all unsure of what to do. Truth be told, she didn’t know either, and so she patiently waited for someone to make the first move. Overhead, they heard the rotors of a helicopter pass overhead, shining a spotlight onto various buildings in an effort to flush them out. All of them had concealed themselves carefully, preventing the helicopter from spotting them. As it flew away, each of the heroes watched it go, and soon Green Arrow stood up and walked before them.

“We can’t stay here,” he declared. “That much is obvious. But, with our comms jammed, there’s no way to call in evac. So, as much as I don’t like saying this, we’re going to have to keep going.”

“Right,” Ruby called out from her perch. “I think…our best course of action is to find those jammers. We shut those down, we can call the Watchtower for help.”

“Any luck finding those?” Yang asked, but Ruby shook her head.

“Not yet,” the Red Reaper admitted. “But, I do see a lot of helicopters circling an area about a mile from us. It could be a good place to start, if nothing else.”

“Well, we don’t have anything else to go after,” Green Arrow said, sighing to himself and shaking his head. He then turned towards the rest of the group, holding his bow and arrow in front of him. “You girls ready?”

Yang was the first to stand up and nodded. “Yep.”

“I recommend staying street level,” Blake added, checking Gambol Shroud with a quick pull of the barrel. “More cover that way.”

The others agreed, and soon all six heroes were on the ground level of the apartment complex. Their eyes were focused on the sky, which had the faint light of the sun begin to peak over the horizon. Although they would normally view that as a good thing, right now the darkness was their greatest source of cover. Once the sun was up, stealth would be that much harder.

When the coast was clear, the heroes sprinted across the street and into a building opposite them. What the building used to be, they couldn’t tell. All they cared about was that it had a partially standing roof and walls, which offered them enough cover to carefully traverse the city unimpeded. The heroes snuck their way through the building, past shattered corridors and through long-since decayed doorways into an alleyway behind the building. After checking for any patrols, the heroes stayed close to the wall and continued moving.

As they neared the exit to an alleyway, however, Blake suddenly stopped as her Aura tingled and held up her hand, her usually reliable ears futilely twitching under her helmet. Her comrades stopped immediately, none of them making  a sound so that Blake could concentrate. She then motioned for them to hide, and so they threw themselves behind some dumpsters just as a small patrol of assassins appeared at the front of the alleyway. The assassins had their rifles at the ready, each one shining a bright flashlight into the empty space between them.

“See anything?” one of them asked, a woman judging by the sound of her voice.

“Thought I heard something,” another said, this one more clearly a man. He motioned for his compatriots to follow, and the three assassins slowly entered the alleyway with their rifles trained forward. Their flashlights arced along the ground and walls, trying to find anything of interest. At the same time, the heroes braced themselves, the Remnantians putting their fingers on their triggers while Green Arrow crouched down and pulled back two arrows on his bow. The lights grew more intense as the assassins grew closer, and everyone knew that a fight was about to break out. The only question was who would be the first to strike.

Determined to be the first, Green Arrow waited until the tip of the first assassin’s rifle poked out from beside his dumpster. Then, in one fluid motion, he broke cover, tripping the assassin with a sweep of his leg then fired both arrows into one target’s chest each. The assassins’ bodies spasmed as electricity coursed through them, allowing the other heroes to pile on top of them and wrestle their weapons away.

The entire action took less than three seconds. Soon, all three assassins were tied to a broken pipe, their feet bound together and their hands above and behind their heads. Each were glaring at the heroes with complete hatred and disgust, which didn’t concern the heroes at all. Instead, they were crouching before them, aiming their weapons at the villains’ heads while searching their persons for anything they could use.

“Found something,” Yang said as he pulled out a folded piece of paper. She unfurled it, revealing a hand-drawn map of the Blüdhaven ruins. Yang broke into a small smile as she began to make out various sites of key interest scattered around the city. Communication jammers, AA-turrets, SAM launchers, and most importantly, a central storage area near the docks that was heavily fortified. If she was a betting woman, that was undoubtedly where the League of Shadows were keeping the Grimm. Black Canary then walked over to Yang, who silently handed her the map and allowed her to take a look.

“Thanks, boys,” Black Canary told the nervous assassins, then she threw out her leg and kicked them all in the head, knocking all out. “There, that’ll hold them for a while.”

“I already took out their cyanide pills,” Weiss pointed out, frowning deeply. That was the first thing they took from them, as the last thing they wanted was for the fanatics to kill themselves before they could be questioned. That proved to be harder than anticipated, hence why they shifted towards searching for anything physical they could use. The fact that someone would be willing to eat cyanide just to avoid capture was sickening to the former heiress, and part of her wondered if every League assassin was willing to go that far. It was a disturbing thought, one she didn’t prefer to dwell on. Neither did the others for that matter, so none felt the need to bring it up again.

“Alright, I found the closest jammer to us,” Black Canary declared as she scanned the map into her suit’s HUD. She then spread it to the rest of the team, and a small mini-map appeared on the bottom right of their visors. The superhero then crumpled the map and threw it into the dumpster, and after one final check to ensure the assassins weren’t going anywhere, the heroes continued down the alleyway and ducked into a nearby building.

Judging by the emptied shelves and cashier desks, this building used to be a grocery store. Long-since faded scorch marks and bullet holes lined the walls, and occasionally they could see bare skeletons laying crumpled on the floor, scorch marks lining the bones where Parademons clearly shot them with plasma cannons.

“Arrow, Canary,” Ruby quietly spoke as they passed through this hallowed space, “did you two fight in the Darkseid War?”

The two older heroes paused, then slowly nodded. Green Arrow then said, “I had only been on the scene for a few weeks at that point. Hadn’t even met Black Canary yet. That week was…the most harrowing of my entire life. I couldn’t even count how many times I thought I was going to die.”

“Same,” Black Canary whispered. “I took part in the Battle of Gotham City. So many innocent lives lost, and all for what? Just so a mad god could get more power? It was all so pointless.”

“Thank the Gods you all stopped him,” Yang spoke quietly. And she meant that, not just because she had grown to care about Earth and its people since she arrived. Perhaps a bit more selfishly, Yang knew that had Earth failed in repelling Darkseid, the entire universe, including Remnant, would fall to his whims. They would’ve fallen years before Brainiac ever found them. It was a disquieting notion, all of their fates being determined by a conflict somewhere light years away that they were never even aware existed, let alone able to do anything about. It only made her more determined to make every difference she could.

The heroes continued making their way towards the nearest jammer, which if their HUD’s scales were correct, was still nearly a mile away. At the pace they were going, it would take at least an hour to get there, and by then the light of the sun would be blazing over the horizon. But they couldn’t afford to go any faster. If they tried, the risk of being spotted and attacked rose exponentially. Odds were destroying the jammer would catch the League’s attention, but at least then they could prepare and fortify their position. Better to be attacked prepared than attacked off-guard.

Yet, as they continued their trek, Blake couldn’t help but feel as though someone was watching them. Not with malicious intent but…something else that she couldn’t quite describe. The rest of the heroes felt the same, but none of them could see or hear anything. If anything was watching them, it didn’t feel the need to make itself known for now. Still, they kept their guards up. If anything tried to come after them, they’d be ready.

~

Their target was found in the ruins of a bombed-out school. The ceiling had a massive hole in its center, allowing soft rain to fall on the cracked tile floors. In the back of the hole was the jamming device, surrounded by dozens of heavily armed League of Shadows assassins. Her helmet’s HUD highlighted infrared laser sights attached to their rifles, and on a few she could make out swords and knives strapped onto their persons.

“ _Alright, we take this nice and slow,_ ” Green Arrow whispered. On the other side of the compound, nestled between some craggy chunks of concrete, Blake saw Green Arrow looking towards her. Her HUD was outlining his body with green, but even then her innate night vision made it easier to see. Not that it would be much of an advantage soon. The Sun would be up at any moment, so they had to take out this jammer quickly. Blake swiveled her head, spotting where each member of her team was located. Ruby was in a partially destroyed apartment complex overlooking the school, aiming down Crescent Rose to provide sniper support. Yang and Weiss were on ground level at the western side, prepared to insert themselves into the fray as soon as things went hot. Blake herself was on the south end, Green Arrow on the north, and Black Canary finally took up the east. They had the assassins completely surrounded, and that wasn’t even including the traps they’d set around the perimeter just in case they were spotted. Now that they were as prepared as they could’ve been, it was the best time to press their advantage.

With her belly firmly touching the ground, Blake began to crawl inch by inch towards the school. She avoided taking the most direct path, knowing that although it would be the easiest to traverse, it would also present the most opportunities for the assassins to spot her. They’d prefer to prevent that from happening for as long as possible. Inch by inch, Blake pressed forward, taking cover behind large pieces of rubble whenever she could. When she got behind one, barely fifty meters from the school, Blake had to pause as a guard on patrol passed by. She pressed herself to the ground, trying to make her body as small as possible so that the guard wouldn’t notice her. The tactic worked, and without even sparing a second thought he continued his patrol.

Once the coast was clear, Blake began to move once again. The area she was now crawling against was disturbingly clear of debris, likely to make traversal easier for the assassins. That and make it easier to spot intruders. So, the Faunus increased her pace, careful not to be too obvious or make too much noise. As she neared the wall of the school yard, Blake’s ears twitched as she heard another passing patrol, this time a trio of armed men chatting among themselves. Knowing that she didn’t have much cover, Blake did the only thing she could think of. Using her hands as shovels, she covered herself with as much debris as she could, then went completely still just as the patrol entered her view. They were chatting to themselves, their voices slightly muffled by their helmets yet still clear enough for Blake to understand them.

“So,” one of them asked, a woman judging by the curvy shape of her armor, “what do you think about those ‘Grimm’ things?”

“What do you mean?” another asked, this one a man.

“I mean, don’t they kinda…freak you out?”

“Are you questioning the Demon’s will?” the third asked tersely, but the woman shook her head.

“No, not at all. I agree wholeheartedly with what Ra’s al Ghul desires of them. They’re perfect for cutting humanity down to a manageable size without destroying the world along with it. It’s just…” the woman shivered and looked towards her compatriots. “They freak me out. The Grimm are just so…unnatural.”

The two men looked at each other just as the three walked past Blake’s position. The Faunus, despite knowing her suit would silence her breathing, ceased to do so and became as still as she possibly could. To her alarm, the assassins stopped, but instead of turning towards her in suspicion they simply turned to face each other.

“Yeah, I think I can understand that,” one of the men quietly said, likely to ensure none of the higher ups heard them. “I know they’re important and all, but I don’t feel safe around them. The looks they give me… It’s like they’re boring into my soul.”

The second man, after taking a quick look around, nodded. “I know how you two feel. Sometimes, I too feel the same way. Part of me even feels as though we are playing with forces outside of our control, but I always remember that what we’re doing is just. For the world to be saved, mankind must be controlled, and from what we’ve seen, the Grimm truly are the best way to achieve that end.”

The other two assassins looked at him, then nodded before resuming their patrol. Blake, meanwhile, scowled silently, her eyes following them as they disappeared from view.

‘ _Idiots,_ ’ Blake thought. She wasn’t too surprised, if she was being honest. The League of Shadows, from what she’d read about them, were always looking for ways to cull humanity. Whether it be war, disease, or simply terrorism, nothing was off the table for them. To hear that they wanted to unleash the Grimm on the world under the hopes that the monsters would do their job for them was entirely in character, but it still made her blood boil. The Grimm were not able to be controlled in the slightest. Remnant had tried to do so for years. At most, they could be directed, but trying to do so was a fool’s game that would end with utter destruction. Her thoughts drifted back towards Mountain Glenn, which fell because of one man’s attempts to control the Grimm backfiring spectacularly.

But Mountain Glenn was only one city, one that was able to be ‘contained’ almost immediately. If the League of Shadows tried to repeat what Doctor Merlot did but on a global scale, she couldn’t begin to fathom just how many people would die before the Grimm could be contained. They had to stop them, here and now, before it got to that point.

Slowly, Blake crawled out of the debris covering and continued her crawl along the outer wall of the school. Her eyes immediately tracked towards a small hole that led inside, and she made a beeline to it. Once she got near, Blake managed to squeeze her body into its small frame and soon found herself in a dark room. There were rows of desks and chairs lining a blackboard, and Blake instantly recognized that she was inside what was once a classroom. Upon noticing the small size of the desks, Blake’s expression softened, and she sighed. She already knew this was a school but knowing that it was an elementary school made the atmosphere all the heavier.

Still, she couldn’t focus on that. Instead, after scanning the area to see if the coast as clear, Blake stood up and pressed two fingers to the side of her helmet.

“I’m inside the school,” she announced.

“ _Same,_ ” Green Arrow replied instantly. “ _I’ll take the top floor while you stay on the bottom. Be quiet but take out anyone you can without making a scene._ ”

“Got it,” Blake said before signing off. Pulling out Gambol Shroud, Blake made her way towards the half-broken door and slowly opened it. The partially rusted hinges creaked, but Blake was able to see that no one was in the immediate area. With the coast clear, Blake began to move down the hallway, her weapon readied in case she came upon anyone.

Eventually, Blake had to stop to take cover behind a wall outcropping as she spotted a guard walking in her general direction. The hallway was dark, allowing the black-clad Faunus to escape the assassin’s sight as he walked past her. Then, without warning, Blake reached around and put the assassin in a choke hold, dragging the struggling man into a nearby room and out of sight.

With his throat constricted, he wasn’t able to let out a cry for help, so he tried punching her head repeatedly in an effort to free himself. Blake let her Aura take the blows, and soon the man’s struggles slowed until he himself went completely still. Only then did Blake let go, gently lowering him to the floor before tying him up with a pair of cuffs she had on hand. A quick glance through her HUD told her he was still alive, and their assault would begin far before the next radio check-in would alert the assassins to his absence, and so she left him behind.

Blake continued her trek deeper into the darkened school, making her way towards the jammer. Through shattered windows, Blake could see the device more clearly. It was located in the center of a large crater, a sturdy metal antenna topped with a dish. A red strobe light was blinking on top of it, telling her that it was activated. The only reason why their own communications were still working was because it was apparently attuned to jam certain frequencies, frequencies only useful for long range communications. Short-wave radio was completely unaffected. If they had any hope of calling for backup, they had to take it out and hope there weren’t more.

She soon came across a pair of assassins, their backs turned to her as they were walking along the hallway. Leaping up into the air, Blake planted her feet onto their backs, causing the surprised villains to hit their heads on the ground and be knocked into unconsciousness. Their weapons scattered along the floor, and Blake quickly picked up both full-grown men and their rifles with a soft grunt before depositing both into a nearby closet. After cuffing them, she exited the closet and continued moving.

As Blake got closer to the jammer, the number of guards steadily increased. Some were alone, others in pairs or small groups. She managed to silently take them out one by one. It was easier for the lone guards. A simple choke hold or punch to the back of the head was enough to get the job done. The most difficult was a man who was standing in the middle of the hallway with no easy way for her to go towards him. There was, however, a partially destroyed classroom with a large hole in its wall, a hole the assassin happened to be standing next to. Using a smaller hole, Blake was able to enter the room and sneak along the bottom edge. Once she was behind the assassin, she quickly reached over, grabbed him, and pulled him inside to deliver a single punch to his helmet. It did the trick, knocking him out instantly and allowing her to move forward once again.

For the small groups, Blake acted fast, hard, and above all else quietly. Using her superior agility and flexibility, she would attack all at once with a combination of punches, kicks, using her ribbon to wrap one and use their body as a flail to slam into another. Before long, the bottom floor was devoid of any conscious assassins, leaving only the guards directly at the jammer.

“ _Nightshade, I’m good on my end. You?”_ Green Arrow asked.

“I am,” Blake replied, taking position along a shattered wall looking out onto the jammer’s position. Above her, Blake saw Green Arrow’s bow just peeking out from behind a corner, two arrows nocked and aimed at a pair of guards. Blake aimed Gambol Shroud at another, steadying her breathing and waiting for Green Arrow to give the signal.

“ _Knock ‘em down,_ ” Green Arrow ordered, releasing both arrows at the same time which struck the unsuspecting assassins in the head simultaneously. The arrows stuck, giving them barely a second to figure out what was going on before an intense electrical shock coursed through their bodies. They dropped to the floor like a lead bricks, twitching and spasming just as the other guards turned to look at their fallen comrades. Before one could shout, Blake threw Gambol Shroud towards him as a grapnel, wrapping the ribbon around his body. Blake pulled him back while jumping forward to knock him out with a flying kick to his head. As she was still in the air, Blake pulled out a pair of shock disks and threw them into another pair of guards, who were aiming their rifles in an effort to gun her down. The disks connected to their bodies before they had a chance to fire, and like the first two they fell to the ground spasming. Finally, Green Arrow fired another arrow into the last remaining guard, who was trying to radio for help before the shock arrow knocked him into blissful unconsciousness.

The air fell silent, and after taking one final scan of the surroundings, Blake sighed in relief.

“Area’s secure. Get on over here, guys,” Blake called out over the radio. In response, she heard a series of dull thuds as her teammates took out the remaining guards on the outside of the school in quick succession. She then saw the group enter the building, carrying the unconscious assassins over their shoulders to safely place away. Once they were all ready, they regrouped at the jammer, eyeing it for a way to turn it off without raising suspicion.

“So, what do we do now?” Yang asked, placing her hands on her hips while looking up at the top of the radio antenna. Blake, meanwhile, was looking at the control panel, but to her irritation it wasn’t written in English. Instead, her HUD was identifying it as Arabic, and without a steady connection to the Internet, it was proving hard to find a translation. Luckily, Green Arrow seemed to understand the language as he walked up to the panel and began to type in a command.

“You girls get ready,” he said, his eyes focused on the panel before him. “Whether this gets us to talk with the tower again or not, the League of Shadows _will_ notice. They’ll come in full force, so we’ll need to run as fast as we can.”

“Right,” Ruby declared, shifting her weapon to its marksman rifle configuration. Black Canary smiled and patted the Red Reaper on the shoulder. Green Arrow, meanwhile, continued to type, and once he was finished he pressed the ‘Enter’ key and looked up at the dish. At once, the red strobe light ceased flashing, and the dish tilted down. The jammer was now officially off, and immediately Black Canary pressed her fingers to her head and began to speak.

“Strike Team to Watchtower, can anyone copy?” she called out, hoping to get a response. Instead, she only received static. Black Canary cursed to herself while trying again. The response was the same, and with a huff she tore her hand away and curled it into a fist.

“Dammit, no response. There must be more jammers,” Black Canary told the others. At the same time, a dull alarm rang out over Blüdhaven, and soon they spotted several helicopters begin flying in their direction.

“Damn,” Green Arrow cursed, going up to the top of the roof to get a closer look while trying to find an escape route. To his alarm, he could see heat signatures coming from all sides as dozens of assassins raced towards them.

“How many?” Black Canary asked as she pulled out an explosive charge to place on the tower. Detected or not, the last thing they needed was for the assassins to turn the jammer back on. Though Yang saved her the trouble by the simple expedient  of stabbing her hands under the machine’s base and ripping it from its moorings, the whole thing toppling to the ground with a satisfying smash.

“I count sixty, coming from all sides. We’re cut off,” Green Arrow revealed. The other heroes scowled and Black Canary bit back a curse. Both at the faster than expected response and at the unspoken assumption that this was just the first wave. Thoughts raced through their heads as they tried to figure out what to do. They could try making a break for it, cutting through the enemy line and get the hell out of dodge. But that would involve them leaving a highly defensible position, and that could get them blindsided or caught out in the open by heavy ordinance. One by one, they all came to the same conclusion. As much as they didn’t want to, the safer option was to stand and fight, leaving once this first wave was eliminated.

“Looks like the stealth mission’s done,” Yang said, loading fresh shells into Ember Celica. At the same time, she patted her lower back where her newest backup weapon was stored. Then, as the helicopters grew closer, the heroes spread out, taking position along the external walls and roof of the school where they watched a small army of assassins close in on all sides. There were several dozen men and women, armed with rifles, swords, bows, and more. Overhead were two transport helicopters armed with side-mounted chain guns and were soon joined by a single attack helicopter. None of the heroes minded, instead taking position and waiting for the opportune moment to strike.

No one said a word as the assassins charged forward, their rifles raised and their fingers hovering over the triggers. Overhead, the attack helicopter loaded missiles and aimed its chin-mounted machine gun, swiveling around as it tried to find a target. None of the heroes cared. Instead, Ruby simply shifted Crescent Rose into its 20mm configuration, planted it against the ground, and aimed at the back rotor. She didn’t pull the trigger immediately, however, as she and her allies waited for the first wave of assassins to pass through the partially destroyed streets and alleyways that led to the school.

Then, without warning, the traps they had placed around the perimeter ahead of time activated. Arcs of electricity shot into the air, bouncing off the metal pipes, guns, and swords. League of Shadows assassins twitched and screamed in agony as they fell to the ground, their muscles no longer responding to their commands. Not everyone was caught, but their allies’ anguish gave them pause. Ruby was satisfied with that opening, and so fired a single 20mm round into the attack helicopter. The shot struck, carving a deep hole into the tail that caused the helicopter to spin out of control. The pilot attempted to pull out, but soon the helicopter crashed hard into the top of a nearby building. Brick and concrete flew out in all directions, and from her scope Ruby could see the pilot and copilot slumped over, knocked out by the force of the crash.

The two support helicopters veered off, firing their chain guns towards where they thought Ruby was hiding. None of the rounds hit, allowing Ruby to quickly aim and fire another shot into one of their tails. Again, a helicopter spun out of control and crashed, but before Ruby could fire a third, the helicopter flew out of sight behind the ruins of what was once a skyscraper.

“Dang it!” Ruby shouted, briefly standing up to try and find a better shot. A few rounds flew past her head, making her yelp and duck back down to avoid the attacks. Swapping out her 20mm magazine for her 7.62 marksman rounds, Ruby zipped away in a cloud of petals and landed on the ground just as the first assassins entered the perimeter. Aiming quickly, Ruby fired single shots into each assassin’s head, the electrified rubber bullets sending them to the ground in pain. Once the magazine ran dry, Ruby reloaded and continued to fire, and by the time the assassins managed to get to her, nearly twenty by Ruby’s quick count were laying on the ground groaning in pain.

Smirking under her helmet, Ruby reconfigured Crescent Rose into its scythe form. The assassins, unused to seeing such a large weapon wielded by a little girl, flinched. The Red Reaper eagerly took advantage of their momentary pause, rushing forward and knocking one in the gut with the blunt end of the scythe. Another tried to fire, but Ruby continued her momentum to twirl the scythe vertically, knocking the rifle out of his hands while simultaneously uppercutting him. He flew up into the air, landing on the ground with a thud just as Ruby turned her attention to the rest of her attackers.

There were ten of them, flanking the Red Reaper from all sides. Unlike their fallen brethren, these warriors were ready, and were already firing fully automatic fire into Ruby’s body. Their shots, unlike the petty criminals and gangsters Ruby had previously encountered, were calm and precise. A few rounds bounced off her Aura before Ruby petaled away, but the assassins followed her form until she reformed against their flanks. They fired again, causing Ruby to yelp before she began spinning Crescent Rose in front of her to block the bullets. A few managed to make it through, but the makeshift shield was enough for her to formulate a plan.

With her weapon still spinning, Ruby crouched down and focused her semblance on just her lower body. Then she leaped forward, boosting herself to plow her weapon into the group of assassins before her. Surprised, only a few managed to dive away in time, the rest sent flying back from Ruby’s blow. Ruby stopped spinning her weapon, turning around to count how many were left. The assassins were down to four now, and a pair were already getting up to aim their weapons toward her again.

“Oh, no you don’t!” Ruby shouted, bursting forward and reappearing in between them. She kicked one in the chest, knocking the air out of their lungs and hit the other in the head with the back of her scythe. Both assassins fell to the ground, one clutching her chest and wheezing before Ruby kicked her head to knock her out. Satisfied that these two were dealt with, Ruby turned to face the last two, who instead of picking up their rifles pulled out thin swords from their backs. They were already charging, and Ruby swung Crescent Rose towards them in an attempt to hit both at the same time.

To her surprise, both dodged her attack. One by diving over it, the other sliding underneath on his knees. The airborne assassin landed with a roll, swinging his blade at her while continuing his momentum. Ruby parried the strike with the shaft, but before she could retaliate, the other struck low, aiming for her ankle. The blade bounced off Ruby’s Aura, giving her time to leap back as the two assassins continued charging towards her.

All three descended into a tight, brutal melee, the two assassins working together seamlessly to keep Ruby on her toes. One would strike high, the other low. One from the back, the other from the front. They knew that Ruby was faster and stronger than them, so preventing her from focusing her attention on one or the other was the only way they were going to win. Ruby, however, was quickly catching on to their game. She was blocking each strike more effectively, her retaliations getting closer and closer, and eventually she was able to pivot her body away from a stab at the last second, loop her arm around the assassin’s, and hurl his body into the other. Both crashed onto the ground, and Ruby used Crescent Rose like a golf club to knock both into the air and crash into a large chunk of concrete. They groaned while sprawled on the ground before slipping into unconsciousness.

Ruby glanced around, seeing that her immediate area was free of assassins. Gunshots were being fired in the distance, but before Ruby rushed off to join them, she held her weapon tightly to her body to give it a big hug.

“Oh, I’m so happy you’re back!” she exclaimed then rushed away, leaving a cloud of rose petals in her wake.

Meanwhile, on the other end of the school, Weiss was deflecting numerous streams of fully automatic gunfire with her Glyphs. Her back was against the wall, allowing her to keep her attention focused squarely in front of her. The Ivory Mage wasn’t concerned. Indeed, the Shield Glyphs were providing her ample time to think and strategize on how to move past her current predicament. The solution was remarkably easy. With the Glyphs still in front of her, she knelt down and stabbed Myrtenaster into the ground, concentrating as hard as she could. Behind the assassins, Nth Metal-infused Glyphs formed, and they barely had time to look down before the fantastic metal inverted gravity’s pull, sending them skyward. Once the gunfire stopped, Weiss smirked and stood up straight, dissipating the Glyphs in front of her and forming one behind her.

“Amateurs,” she mocked, then Weiss launched herself towards the nearest assassin, swinging the flat of Myrtenaster’s blade against his body to send him flying back. Forming another Glyph in front her, Weiss rebounded, striking another while they were still trapped helplessly in suspension. Like a pinball, Weiss bounced back and forth among the assassins, striking each one with either her blade, fist, or feet. Before long, each were knocked out, falling back to the floor with deep thuds against the cracked concrete ground or being sent flying into the shattered windows of what used to be apartments. When Weiss gracefully descended on the ground, one final assassin that wasn’t caught in her initially attack charged her with his sword raised high. Without even batting an eye, Weiss riposted, sending his blade towards the ground while driving her elbow into his face. He fell to the ground like a brick, and Weiss rolled her eyes before silently moving on to the next group she could see.

On the northern end of the school, where what used to be a parking lot was now filled with rusted carcasses of long-since abandoned cars and buses, Blake and Yang took the fight to the assassins head-on. Using Ember Celica to deflect the bullets aimed towards her, Yang plowed into one assassin before throwing a few punches into his ribcage. A crack followed, and the assassin fell to the ground in anguish before Yang continued onto the next one. She aimed her arms at two separate targets and fired single slugs into each of their chests, sending them down while she absorbed their bullets without a fuss.

“Come on, guys!” Yang mocked, ducking under a swung sword to deliver a headbutt to her attacker’s chin. “Give a girl a good time, will ya?”

The assassins growled in annoyance, and behind her helmet Yang smirked. As cool and collected as these assassins liked to make themselves out to be, it was proving remarkably easy to push the right buttons and set them off.

“I guess that’s what happens when you follow a loser like Ra’s al Ghul! No challenge whatsoever!” Yang yelled out in a mocking tone.

“How dare you besmirch the Head of the Demon!” an assassin yelled out furiously, exposing himself just long enough for Blake to fire a single shot into his head, knocking him out. Blake rolled her eyes as she used a shadow clone to avoid a burst of gunfire, firing two shots into her attacker before continuing on. The Faunus knew what game her partner was playing, and she couldn’t deny the results. Insulting their cult-like leader was certainly enough to get the assassins riled up, and a riled-up fighter was a less effective fighter.

Still, she had a job to do, and she wasn’t the best at playing the obnoxious target like Yang was. So, with her sheathe cleaver in one hand and Gambol Shroud in the other, Blake leaped from car to car, slicing at any enemy in her way. She chopped their weapons in half, fired shots into their bodies as she soared over them, kicked a few others to make them into her steppingstones, and throughout it all prevented a single shot from getting through. Copious amounts of shadow clones were taking the blows for her, and occasionally she even used them to boost herself higher into the air so that she could soar above an enemy.

During one such maneuver, Blake threw Gambol Shroud around a pole and used the ribbon as a swing, allowing her to kick an assassin in the head on her downward arc. Landing on the ground with her legs spread out, Blake dodged another burst of gunfire with a shadow clone taking her place, then threw her weapon towards the attacker. He dodged, causing the chain scythe to embed itself into the concrete behind him, but Blake was fine with that. Without skipping a beat, Blake pulled herself forward much to the assassin’s surprise. He fired a quick burst of bullets which bounced off Blake’s Aura while she firmly planted his foot into his chest. He was sent sprawling to the ground, and Blake quickly leaned down and delivered a solid punch to the side of his head, knocking him out instantly.

The Nightshade stood up and looked around their general area. She saw dozens of knocked out assassins laying around, some on top of cars while others on the pavement. Surrounded by a large group of bodies was Yang herself, currently holding a man by the scruff of the neck and rearing her fist back. She punched him squarely in the face, causing his head to slump to the side. Yang nodded to herself, then let go of the assassin and turned to face her partner who was now jogging over to her while firing potshots towards oncoming enemies.

“So, ready for round two?” Yang asked cheekily. Blake rolled her eyes and inserted a fresh magazine into Gambol Shroud, and together the two partners raced forward once again.

Unlike their charges, Green Arrow and Black Canary didn’t have the luxury of having Aura to protect themselves. Their suits could take a few shots, of course, but that didn’t mean they could walk into oncoming fire without a care in the world. That being said, they weren’t completely out of options, especially after Black Canary shouted towards them with enough force to both blow them away and send their guns flying out of reach. Still screaming at them, Black Canary prevented the assassins from so much as even trying to retaliate beyond futilely clutching the sides of their heads to protect their ears. This gave Green Arrow an opening to fire a cluster of arrows into their bodies, sending them sprawling to the ground twitching uncontrollably.

Another assassin entered his view, this one armed with a bow and arrow. Immediately, Green Arrow leaned his body back just as the assassin let her arrow loose. As the arrow passed Green Arrow’s body, he deftly caught it by the shaft, nocked it against his own bow, and fired it back towards the assassin. She yelped as her body was pinned to the wall by the arrow, otherwise doing no damage to her person, but before she could do anything more than sputter angrily, Green Arrow fired a concussion arrow into her head, knocking her out.

“Honestly, what did she think was going to happen?” Green Arrow asked as he calmly nocked another arrow and fired it towards an enemy. “Getting into an archery battle with me…”

“Arrow, your ego is showing again,” Black Canary lightly mocked as she released the tension on her throat. This allowed an assassin to regain his bearings and charge her, pulling out his sword in an effort to cut her down. Black Canary merely dodged and ripped the weapon from his grip, followed by a series of light punches to his head to disorient. Then, with her attacker stunned, she gripped both sides of his head and brought it down to her rising knee, knocking him out and sending his body sprawling to the floor.

“Sorry, can’t help it,” Arrow said as he calmly released a trio of arrows into a group of assassins. He then heard another assassin charge him from behind, and without looking, he aimed his bow behind his back and fired a single shock arrow into their chest, sending them spasming to the ground. Seeing this, Black Canary couldn’t help but chuckle, shaking her head as she dodged a sword swing from another assassin then screamed with enough force to send him flying back into a wall.

“By the way, I’ve been meaning to ask,” Black Canary began, screaming at another group of assassins, “when’s the next date night? It’s been a while.”

“I know, and I’m sorry about that,” Green Arrow regretfully answered. “Been kinda busy as of late.”

“Same, but hearing about that little double-date back in Gotham got me thinking,” she admitted, spin kicking another assassin in the head at the same time.

“If you want, when we’re back in Star City I can call a few restaurants, get us a reservation,” Green Arrow offered as he swung out his bow to trip an assassin, firing an arrow into his head once the assassin was flat on his back.

Black Canary smiled at the suggestion as she headbutted another assassin who came from her flank. “That sounds lovely.”

Green Arrow smiled back, and together the two heroes turned to watch as a group of assassins aimed their rifles at them. Without missing a beat, Green Arrow nocked and released an arrow with a large, bulbous tip that, once it neared the assassins, exploded outward to envelop them in a heavy net. Black Canary then followed up with her Canary Cry, sending them flying back and knocking them out once they hit a chunk of concrete. Taking a moment to collect their breath, the two heroes looked around to see if there were any more. To their relief, they saw none.

“Alright, I think we’re good,” Green Arrow called out over comms. “Regroup on our position and we’ll—”

“ _Head’s up, chopper’s back!_ ” Yang cried. Alarmed, Green Arrow turned his head to watch as a lone support helicopter flew towards them. It was flying close to the ground, careful to keep the buildings between it and Ruby’s sniper rifle. Before any of the heroes could react, its gunners fired their chainguns towards them, forcing them to scatter and hide behind cover.

“ _I can’t get a shot!_ ” Ruby exclaimed, having already shifted Crescent Rose into its 20mm configuration. “ _He keeps hiding behind the buildings!_ ”

“Can you reposition?” Black Canary asked, flinching as a burst of bullets struck the wall next to her, shredding part of it off.

“ _Not without getting shot!_ ” Ruby replied. Green Arrow bit back a curse, ducking as a series of bullets ripped through the wall he and Black Canary were hiding behind. The helicopter was circling them now, firing its weapons every few seconds in an effort to keep the heroes at bay. If it even caught a tiny whiff of color, the gunners would fire on that position, preventing any retaliation from ensuing. They weren’t in a good position, and all of them knew it, but the elder superheroes were struggling to find a way out of it without getting themselves injured or worse.

“ _Green Arrow, I have an idea!_ ” Ruby suddenly shouted into their comms.

“I’m all ears, Reaper!” Green Arrow replied, moving along with Black Canary to a safer position. The two heroes stopped at a large hole in the wall, where they could clearly see the helicopter passing by overhead.

“ _Do you have any explosive arrows?_ ”

“Yes,” he answered, beginning to see where Ruby was going.

“ _Perfect. This jerk’s moving too fast for me to get a shot on him, but if I can get his attention—”_

“It’ll give Green Arrow an opening to put this bastard down,” Black Canary finished. Green Arrow nodded. A simple plan, but one that they would make do with.

“Let’s do it,” he said, pulling out an explosive arrow and prepping it against his bowstring. “Ready when you are!”

“ _Got it!_ ” Ruby called out. With the helicopter circling above, Green Arrow watched with bated breath as he waited for Ruby’s signal. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a flash of red as Ruby broke cover from the inside of a destroyed school bus. She dashed along the ruined parking lot, and the helicopter turned to fire its guns at Ruby. At the same time, Green Arrow stood up and pulled back his bowstring, preparing to fire the explosive arrow at the tail rotor.

Then, before he could release the arrow, a single shot went out. The chainguns on both sides of the helicopter stopped firing, and the gunners fell lifelessly off the craft and crashed onto the ground below. Another shot fired, this time shattering the glass of the cockpit. The pilot slumped over, and the helicopter nosedived into the ground, exploding in a ball of fire and sending metal shards flying everywhere.

Everything was silent as the heroes struggled to comprehend what just happened. Ruby was now standing in the open, staring at the ruined helicopter with her body radiating confusion. Green Arrow, with his arrow still nocked and the bowstring pulled back, was already scanning the area, trying to find where the shot came when a third went out. A spark rang off of Crescent Rose’s blade, startling the Red Reaper as she burst away to take cover once again. Before Green Arrow could do the same, however, he heard a body fall to the ground with a wet thud, and he looked to see that the bullet had ricocheted straight into an assassin’s head. He was clad head to toe in a debris-lined ghillie suit right next to where Ruby previously stood, and suddenly the superhero felt a chill run down his spine.

Evidently, Ruby spotted the body then too, as she said, “ _I didn’t even see him…_ ”

“ _Who the hell…?_ ” Yang asked, taking cover behind a car. Green Arrow and Black Canary, meanwhile, remained silent and looked at each other. Slowly, realization began to form in their minds, and their eyes narrowed. Nodding to each other, Green Arrow aimed his bow straight up through the hole and released the explosive arrow. He watched as it soared high above, then on the top of its arc another shot rang out that struck the arrow in the center of the head, causing it to explode harmlessly away from anybody else. RWBY, Green Arrow, and Black Canary watched as the dark smoke cloud slowly dissipated, and tension began to fill the air around them.

There was only one person on the planet skilled enough to make those kinds of shots, and both League members knew exactly who he was.

“I know you’re out there, Deadshot,” Green Arrow called out on open comms, much to RWBY’s surprise. Ruby herself gasped, recognizing the name, but before any of her teammates could ask what was going on, they heard a man chuckle over the comm channel.

“ _Took you long enough, Arrow,_ ” a gruff voice laughed. “ _Was beginning to think you’d lost your touch._ ”

“Why are you here?” Green Arrow, unamused, demanded. The man on the other end merely laughed.

“ _Why do you think? In case you’re wondering, I’m not here to kill you. I had ample opportunity to do that ever since you and your buddies arrived. You’re welcome, by the way._ ”

“Gee, thanks.” Green Arrow scowled. If he knew Deadshot, and after several years of dealing with the assassin, he liked to think he did, he was likely tracking himself, Black Canary, and his charges ever since they arrived. Perhaps even before.

“What do you want?” Black Canary asked, curling her hand into a tight fist.

“ _Right now? For you six to stay where you are. My boss, for lack of a better word, wants us to get along for the moment, so the rest of my team’s coming down to meet you all. Don’t try to leave._ ”

With that, Deadshot shut off his comms, leaving only static. Green Arrow bit back a curse and shook his head, then calmly broke cover and walked out into the open while keeping his eyes where he assumed Deadshot was located.

“What’s going on?” Blake asked, looking around to spot anything while keeping behind cover.

“Don’t bother getting behind cover, Nightshade,” Green Arrow said. “He could hit you anyway, and besides, right now he’s being ‘cooperative.’”

“’Cooperative?’” Weiss asked, slowly standing up as Black Canary joined Green Arrow. After a moment, she too broke cover to join them. “Does that mean this ‘Deadshot’ is a good guy?”

“No,” Green Arrow answered immediately, scowling as he finally saw five individuals, three men and two women, walk towards them from all sides. “They most certainly are _not_ good guys.”

[~][~]


	37. Hunters of Justice Chibi Valentine's Day 2020 Special!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happy Valentine's Day!

_*Happy, up-tuned, jingly version of Justice League theme*_

Hunters of Justice Chibi!

~

_The Cupid Shuffle_ by trestwho

~

Valentine’s Day. A holiday devoted entirely to love, where romance blossomed, and couples came together for that most glorious and powerful emotion. For many, it was their favorite time of year. Some unfortunates dreaded it, while others allowed themselves to reminisce about loves long since gone.

But for some, they _lived_ for Valentine’s Day. Or rather, what Valentine’s Day represented.

“Ooh, it’s today! It’s today!” Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love, rejoiced as she pranced around her private room on Mount Olympus. The other Gods were nowhere to be seen, even her nominal husband Hephaestus. They had long since learned to leave her alone on Valentine’s Day, lest they be roped into her schemes. Her son Eros, however, had no such luck. Not that he minded. He loved Valentine’s Day almost as much as his mother.

“What shall we do today, Mother?” Eros asked, testing his bow and placing arrows into a quiver strapped to his back. Aphrodite turned to face her son with a wide smile on her face bright enough to shine like a star, and spread her arms wide.

“The same thing we do every day, Eros! Spread love throughout the world!” Aphrodite declared. Eros smiled proudly, standing up straighter as his wings began to twitch in excitement. Knowing his mother was on a roll, Eros stayed quiet and let her continue.

“But not just any love, though. The best kind of love!”

“And what love would that be?” Eros asked.

“The kind of love that should’ve sailed a long time ago, but whether due to ignorance, indecisiveness, fear, or simply not recognizing what was already there, it hadn’t. Today, Eros, we will be letting those long-waiting ships _sail_.”

Eros smiled and flapped his wings, allowing him to hover in place.

“Any specific targets?”

“As a matter of fact, there are.”

~

Yang tiredly ate her breakfast, a plate of scrambled eggs, toast and bacon with a glass of milk to wash it down. The others were sitting around the kitchen table, eating their own food, reading on their scrolls, or chatting excitingly among themselves.

“Can you believe it’s Valentine’s Day!” Ruby exclaimed, fidgeting in her seat as she tried to talk to a clearly disinterested Weiss.

“Yes, Ruby. It is,” Weiss stated, thumbing through the latest Daily Planet issue. To her distaste, it was merely a fluff piece containing mindless romantic drivel. She should’ve realized it would be the case when Lois’ name wasn’t featured on the author list. Ruby clearly didn’t mind. In fact, in her hyperactive imagination, she was thrilled about the holiday. She always was a sucker for the idea of romance, despite having never been in one herself. Not that Weiss was any more successful on that front. Her lone relationship, if she could call it that, ended almost as soon as it began.

“So, Jaune,” Pyrrha said as Jaune dug into his bowl of cereal. “Any plans for today?”

“Hmm?” Jaune mumbled, his mouth full. Seeing Pyrrha’s expectant face, he swallowed and hummed in thought. After a few seconds, his eyes widened, and he nodded. “Oh, yes actually. Nora and I were gonna build a Lego Death Star with Ruby.”

“You know it!” Nora declared, gently rubbing her hand on the large cardboard box containing thousands of pieces of multicolored plastic bricks.

“Oh…” Pyrrha murmured, slightly disappointed. Sensing this, Jaune looked at his partner with a worried gaze.

“You can join us, if you want?” he offered, oblivious to her true feelings. Pyrrha looked up at him with a small smile and softly nodded.

“I’d like that.”

Yang, meanwhile, shook her head at her fellow blonde’s obliviousness. It was clear to her that Pyrrha would’ve much rather preferred a more traditional Valentine’s Day experience, not playing with Legos. Although, she had to admit there was a certain appeal with them. Ruby had gotten her to help build a couple, which was a nice sisterly bonding experience. Still, not the most romantic.

A flash of black crossed Yang’s eye, and she turned her head to glance at Blake. She was reading some book about a whale, her feline ears twitching at the commotion around her. The sunlight trickled in through the window blinds, casting almost a perfect shadow and radiance around her. Yang thought it was stunning, but shook the thought out of her head.

“So, Blakey?” Yang began, her partner breaking her attention from her book to glance up at Yang. With a smile on her face, Yang said, “You wanna do something today?”

Blake remained silent for a moment, and at first Yang thought she might’ve stepped over her bounds. But, with a soft smile on her face, Blake lowered her book and looked straight into Yang’s eyes.

“Actually, I was thinking that—”

Suddenly, a loud crash and gasp sounded through the kitchen. Everyone turned their heads, a soft grunt of surprise coming from Blake as they saw Jaune standing up, his shirt completely drenched with milk and pieces of cereal clinging to his hair. Yang couldn’t help but chuckle, which caused Jaune to give her a half-lidded glare.

“Hah. Hah,” Jaune groaned, Yang continuing to chuckle as the others, outside of a fussy Pyrrha and a silent Blake, joined her.

“What did you _do_ , Vomit Boy?” Yang asked teasingly, and Jaune sighed and showed his soaking wet hands.

“I got distracted and turned my bowl into a catapult,” Jaune admitted. The laughter grew, and Jaune groaned in forlorn acceptance. He then turned around, placing his bowl in the sink and rubbed his hands dry with a towel.

“Well, I’m done with breakfast. Gonna go change into something dry,” he announced, then briskly walked out of the kitchen back towards his team’s room. The others watched him go, and Yang shook her head and smiled softly.

“Only you, Jaune. Only you,” she whispered to herself, then turned back towards Blake. “You were saying, Blakey?”

Blake didn’t respond at first, instead her eyes continuing to track Jaune well after he disappeared behind a wall. Her cheeks were slightly red, and for whatever reason she appeared to have completely forgotten about the rest of the world surrounding her.

“Uh, Blake? Earth to Blake?” Yang called out, snapping her fingers in front of the Faunus. The movement seemed to work, and Blake shook her head as though exiting a trance.

“Huh, wha?” Blake said, turning her head towards Yang quickly. Seeing Yang’s worried face, Blake took a deep breath and released it slowly. “Sorry, got a little distracted.”

“I’ll say,” Yang replied, then shrugged it off. “Anyway, you were going to tell me something before Jaune turned himself into a cereal bowl?”

Blake narrowed her eyes in confusion, then they widened as she remembered what Yang was talking about. “Oh, right! You were asking me what I wanted to do today?”

“Yeah, that,” Yang clarified. “’Cuz if you don’t have any plans, I was going to see a movie and figured you might want to come with me.”

Yang half-expected Blake to think for a moment then dryly agree, as was her norm, but instead the Faunus glanced quickly towards the direction Jaune had exited.

“Actually,” Blake slowly began, “I think I’m going to help Jaune and the others build that Death Star.”

“…Really?” Yang asked, caught completely off guard. She had expected a lot of various plans Blake might’ve had for the day. Reading a book, testing out her newest gear, or cooking up new tuna recipes to shove down everyone’s throat. Hearing that she wanted to hang out with Jaune to build Legos was not one of them.

“Yeah. It seems like it could be fun,” Blake continued. “You can go see that movie, though. Tell me how it goes.”

“But—” Before Yang could continue, Blake stood up and fast-walked out of the room, heading in the direction of Team RWBY’s room. Yang watched her go, clearly surprised at this unexpected development. Finally, after a moment of silence, Yang could only say, “Oh… Okay, then.”

Sighing, Yang hung her head and looked forlornly at the ground. Then her eyes spotted something strange where Blake just sat.

“What the…?” Yang mumbled as she leaned down to pick it up. It was a small wooden shaft, about the size of her thumb. With tapered feathers on the back end and a heart-shaped point on the other, it looked oddly like an arrow.

“What’s cha got there?” Nora asked, chewing loudly on her breakfast as Yang continued to study the strange object. The others, seeing the awkward exchange between Yang and Blake, had chosen to leave the room for the time being. Nora, being Nora, felt no such need to leave and hadn’t finished eating, so she stayed.

“I…think it’s an arrow.”

“An arrow? That’s weird. Where’d it come from?”

“I have no idea.”

~

“Blake, thanks for joining us! We’re going to have so much fun!” Ruby exclaimed as she escorted an oddly nervous Blake down the hall.

“Yeah,” Blake said, the redness of her cheeks growing slightly larger as they got closer to JNPR’s room. “Thanks for letting me play.”

“Uh-uh-uh! We’re not ‘playing’, we’re building!” Ruby insisted, bringing her finger up in emphasis.

“…There’s a difference?”

“A world of difference! I wouldn’t expect a brick-building novice such as yourself to understand such fine vernacular, but don’t worry! We’ll get you there,” Ruby declared, reaching up to pat Blake’s shoulder encouragingly. The Faunus couldn’t help but chuckle at her leader’s antics, but soon they were upon their destination. JNPR’s room, marked by an appropriately labeled sign. The blush on Blake’s face returned in force, but she forced herself to keep it down as Ruby moved her hand to open it.

“Welcome, Blake, to our workshop,” Ruby announced, opening the room to reveal Jaune and Pyrrha sitting on the ground, the box containing the Lego Death Star already opened as they organized its contents.

“Hey, Ruby. Blake,” Jaune greeted both, now wearing a fresh t-shirt with the Pumpkin Pete logo proudly etched along the front. “Have to admit, Blake, I’m kinda surprised you wanted to join us.”

“Oh, you know. Just wanted to try new things,” Blake replied. Jaune pursed his lips for a moment, then nodded in simple acceptance.

“Okay, great! Go ahead and grab a seat. We’re just organizing everything now.” Jaune thrust his thumb towards Pyrrha. “Pyrrha insisted.”

“All I said was that organizing everything would make it easier,” Pyrrha insisted, puffing out her cheeks slightly. “You don’t have to make it sound like I forced you.”

“You kinda did,” Ruby pointed out, having left the room just as it occurred. Pyrrha lightly glared at the cheeky young girl while Jaune bit back a laugh. Blake and Ruby then walked forward, closing the door behind them as they took a seat. Ruby sat next to Pyrrha, but Blake, much to Pyrrha’s surprise, chose to sit conspicuously close to Jaune himself. The boy didn’t seem to notice the rather odd choice of placement, instead continuing to organize the many pieces. Neither did Ruby, who instead hummed happily to herself while swaying in place, organizing her own pieces at the same time. For a moment, Pyrrha thought about drawing attention to it, but before she could, the door to their room opened again.

“I’m here! Sorry about that. Was helping Yang through a little crisis,” Nora announced, taking stock of the situation almost immediately. “Aw, geez. Come on, Pyrrha? Why you gotta get all organized?”

“It’s functional!” Pyrrha insisted, an embarrassed blush on her face as the others chuckled. Still laughing, Ruby looked at Pyrrha just as Jaune slightly lowered his head. Something rustled past his hair, then Ruby felt a small prick on the side of her arm.

“Ah!” Ruby lightly gasped, rubbing her arm and finding a heart-shaped arrow poking out of her shirt. She looked around for the source but found none, then shrugged and turned back to face Pyrrha as the laughter began to die down.

“Don’t worry your pretty little face, Pyrrha. We don’t mind,” Ruby insisted. Pyrrha smiled warmly at Ruby, then turned her head to face the rest of the pieces just as the young girl whispered under her breath, “Really pretty, actually…”

“Huh, did you say something, Ruby?” Pyrrha asked, not sure if she heard Ruby right. Ruby’s face flushed and she shook her head violently.

“Nothing, I said nothing about you or your pretty eyes and hair!” Ruby suspiciously denied, chuckling nervously. “Let’s just play with Legos, alright?”

“I thought you said we were building with Legos?” Blake accused, having taken the opportunity to inch slightly closer to Jaune. Ruby’s blush practically exploded, and with wide eyes Pyrrha recognized a sign she had long thought she’d left behind.

‘ _Oh, Gods… Not again,_ ’ Pyrrha thought as a small flutter of wings flew out from behind a slightly ajar window.

~

“I mean, I just don’t get it!” Yang wailed to Weiss and Ren inside the living room. She was laying her head face-down on a table while Weiss affectionately patted her head.

“There, there. Just let it out,” Weiss soothed her teammate.

“Seriously? Just out of nowhere! She might not think I’m perceptive, but I am! I know what I saw, and what I saw confuses the heck outta me!”

“I must admit,” Ren added as he sipped his tea gently, “Blake showing a sudden interest in Jaune does seem peculiar. I don’t believe they’ve interacted very much.”

“Exactly!” Yang exclaimed, raising her arm into the air while her face was still planted. “It makes no sense!”

“What worries me is the arrow you found,” Weiss said, rubbing her chin. “I sent it over to the League in case it was dangerous, but from what I could see, it was just blunt wood and ordinary bird feathers. Nothing more.”

Yang moved to speak, but  couldn’t find the words and instead sighed. She had been struggling to wrap her head around Blake’s behavior for nearly an hour now, and it still made no sense. Yang might not have had the greatest and most extensive experience in romance in the world, on Earth or Remnant, but she recognized the look on Blake’s face. That was a full-on crush blossoming out onto the world. Normally that wouldn’t have been an issue for Yang. If Blake had a crush on someone, that was her prerogative. Blake could like or date whoever she wanted. But Yang would’ve preferred for the selection to at least make sense, and Jaune ‘Vomit Boy’ Arc made no sense whatsoever in Yang’s mind. Even before they got to Earth, the two hardly ever interacted. Heck, for the longest time Yang thought they had never even spoken a word to each other, and once Blake even confused Jaune for Sun Wukong. Sun, a monkey Faunus with a tail who had a strange yet not at all unwelcome aversion to shirts.

So, it was a great surprise to the blonde brawler when Blake suddenly and inexplicitly appeared to develop a crush on Jaune from out of the blue. The question ‘why’ nagged at her mind and it was driving her insane. Both from how confusing it was as well as a small, barely noticeable hint of jealousy that just wouldn’t leave no matter how much Yang tried to throttle it.

“You seem stressed, Yang,” Weiss declared, rubbing Yang’s shoulders affectionately.

“Gee, ya think?” Yang sarcastically quipped. If Weiss was upset by Yang’s tone, she didn’t show it. Instead, to Ren’s slight confusion, she appeared to chuckle. Before he could focus on it further, Nora stepped into the room, a glass in her hand as she went to refill her drink.

“Sup, guys,” Nora called out, opening the refrigerator door to grab a gallon of milk. As she poured, Nora announced without turning her head, “So, interesting development. Ruby has a crush on Pyrrha.”

“WHAT?!” Yang shouted, bolting upright as both Ren and Weiss turned their heads towards the boisterous girl.

“Yep,” Nora replied, popping the ‘p.’

“When did that happen?” Yang demanded, and Nora shrugged.

“I dunno. Just kinda did as we were building the Death Star. Started mumbling about how pretty Pyrrha was and keeps blushing every time she looks at her. It’s adorable, really.”

Yang had to admit, the thought of Ruby blushing uncontrollably at the sight of her crush did sound adorable and cutesy, but the fact that it was her little sister showing an interest in Pyrrha, of all people, was what threw her for a loop. It was like Jaune and Blake, only this time it was with her little sister.

“How’s Pyrrha handling it?” Ren asked.

“Like a champ, as usual,” Nora answered as she placed the gallon of milk back into the refrigerator and closed the door. “Trying to let her down gently while not breaking her heart at the same time. When I left, that amounted to nice, mindless platitudes like ‘That’s great, Ruby,’ or ‘Thanks for the rose, Ruby. That’s very sweet.’ The rose was made out of Legos, by the way.”

The other three former students looked at Nora incredulously. After a moment, Yang groaned, and Weiss sighed.

“Of course, that’s exactly how’d she flirt,” Weiss grumbled while Yang leaned her head back over her chair.

“Dare I ask about Blake?” Yang asked, not wanting to hear the answer. Nora thought for a moment, trying to determine how best to describe Blake’s showings of newfound affection towards her fearless leader.

~

Jaune stared up at Blake with narrowed, suspicious eyes. Blake, meanwhile, looked back down into his seemingly without a care. The boy took note of the situation he found himself in, and without taking his eyes off the Faunus, began to speak.

“I feel like you’re trying to tell me something. I don’t know what it is, but it’s something,” Jaune said as Blake shuffled herself on his lap. Why, how and when she did that Jaune had long since stopped trying to ask, and Blake was in no mood to answer them.

Blake, meanwhile, gazed into Jaune’s eyes, and finally answered, “Your lap is comfy, and I fit in it. Therefore, I sit.”

“Right…”

Pyrrha could only stare in silent confusion at Jaune and Blake. She had figured out fairly quickly that Blake, for some unknown reason, had developed a crush on her partner. A crush that, unlike herself, Blake was more than willing to act upon. In her own way, at least. Jaune, however, had proven himself to be as dense as a neutron star and despite the fact that Blake was literally sitting on his lap, he still hadn’t gotten the hint. A pang of jealousy struck through Pyrrha’s heart, screaming that it should be her sitting on Jaune’s lap, but the rest of her struck it aside. As much as she might’ve preferred it to have been her, if this strange course of events decided to continue and Jaune wanted it, she’d support it one hundred percent.

Besides, she had her own issue to worry about.

“So, Pyrrha,” Ruby announced as she returned from her team’s room, carrying a red and black rectangular box in her arms. “I was thinking. You’re a girl with a rifle, I’m a girl with a rifle. Maybe we could swap ideas and compare?”

At Ruby’s suggestion, she opened her box to reveal the collapsed and disassembled body of Crescent Rose Mk. II. She happy squirmed in place, holding her weapon up proudly.

“I showed you mine! What about yours?” Ruby asked. Pyrrha looked up at the young girl for a moment, then with the ease of several years of practice and experience, smiled.

“That sounds lovely, Ruby. I’d love to do that.”

“Yay!”

~

Nora finally decided to tell Yang that Blake had proven to be quite forward with her affections, which only caused the blonde to groan and slam her head back onto the table. Weiss went back to rubbing Yang’s shoulder, then seemed to come to a decision.

“You know what, Yang?” Weiss declared, prompting her teammate to look up at her with one eye. “This sullen, dejected look? It doesn’t suit you. We need to cheer you up.”

Yang stared at Weiss for a moment, then sighed and closed her eyes. “You have any ideas?”

“Actually, yes,” Weiss replied, pulling out her scroll and tapping a few keystrokes. “There’s a nice restaurant in Metropolis that caught my eye. I was thinking you and I could go there.”

Silence fell between the group as Yang ruminated over Weiss’ suggestion. Finally, she sat upright and looked at the platinum blonde with a small smile on her face.

“That sounds perfect, Weiss. Thank you,” Yang said.

“You’re welcome,” Weiss replied with a smile of her own, then stood up and turned around to walk towards RWBY’s room. “I’m going to get changed into something nice. You might want to do the same.”

“Will do!” Yang declared as Weiss walked away, the blonde looking back towards Ren as he himself couldn’t help but notice the small wooden arrow sticking out of Weiss’ hair.

“She’s a good friend, you know?” Yang said, smiling obliviously at Ren.

“…Yes, she certainly is,” Ren replied, not wanting to add to Yang’s stress any further. From the corner of his eyes, he looked at Nora just as Yang got up to change as well. When the blonde was gone, Nora shrugged.

“Valentine’s Day, I guess,” Nora suggested. She turned to walk back towards JNPR’s room, but paused and pursed her lips. Then, quickly coming to a decision, she decided against it and instead walked over to cuddle next to Ren. He was surprised at first, but soon smiled softly as the two settled into each other peacefully.

~

Aphrodite smiled to herself as she gazed out into the beyond. An ocean of golden clouds surrounded Mount Olympus on all sides, the light casting an ethereal glow from the heavens above. It was a peaceful, tranquil scene that the Goddess of Love basked in as she felt the joy of love echo from the Earth below. She was alone in her quarters, standing between massive marble columns as red curtains billowed in the wind. Nothing could break her from this moment, and she felt at peace.

Then she heard the flutter of wings, and her smile widened as she turned around to face her returning son.

“Eros!” Aphrodite announced as Eros entered her room, parting a curtain that marked her doorway.

“Hello, Mother,” Eros replied in a subdued tone. Aphrodite found it strange, but moved past it as she walked towards him.

“Well, don’t just stand there. How did your mission go?” she gently asked. Eros looked up at her and gulped, awkwardly rubbing his arm and shifting his gaze everywhere except his mother’s eyes. Aphrodite’s expression began to harden in suspicion, and she prepared to raise her voice when Eros finally began to speak.

“You see, Mother…” Eros began, “I went to the Huntsmen and Huntresses as planned and hit them with arrows.”

“Is that so? Then why do you look ashamed?” Aphrodite asked somewhat forcibly.

“Heh heh, well… Funny story, there. You see—”

“Eros, what did you do?” Aphrodite cut her son off, using her hand to force his eyes to lock with her own. He stared fearfully into her dark expression, and he gulped loudly.

“I missed,” Eros finally announced. Aphrodite gasped and let go of her son, backing away and bringing her hand to her chest as though it had just touched a hot stove.

“What? What do you mean you missed?” she demanded to know. Seeing that there was no way out of this mess, Eros sighed and looked as his feet.

“I went to RWBY and JNPR to try and move them along, as we wanted. My focus was on the more problematic halves of the pairs. You know, the ones that were the primary cause of why they hadn’t happened yet.”

“Yes, of course. Go on,” Aphrodite insisted, and Eros nodded.

“First, I focused on Blake. I tried hitting her with an arrow of love when she was looking at Yang. But, just as I hit her, she looked at Jaune instead…”

“Are you serious?” Aphrodite demanded, hoping that her son was playing a cruel joke on her. When he shook his head, she croaked, “How?”

“They were eating breakfast at the time and just as I released the arrow, Jaune accidentally spilled milk and cereal all over himself that caught everyone’s attention, including Blake’s,” Eros explained, and Aphrodite groaned in slight annoyance.

“Okay, okay. Moving on, did you at least get Arkos going?” Aphrodite asked, rubbing the bridge of her brow.

“I tried,” Eros shamefully admitted, an embarrassed look on his face. Aphrodite groaned and covered her face with her hands, allowing Eros to continue. “I tried hitting Jaune with an arrow as he was looking at Pyrrha, but he moved his head at the last second and the arrow hit Ruby instead.”

“Olympus preserve us. Was Ruby at least _looking_ at Jaune when it hit her?” she begged. Although she would’ve much rather preferred Arkos over Lancaster, at least the latter was a suitable alternative. Two young, inexperienced, socially awkward goofballs meeting on the first day of school, sharing similar interests and helping to build up and support the other during their times of need? The romance practically wrote itself. Even if it was a tad bit cliché, at least it was believable and adorable at the same time.

“No…” Eros slowly admitted. “She was looking at Pyrrha…”

Moving her hands away from her face, Aphrodite looked incredulously at her son, who offered an awkward smile as penance.

“On the bright side,” Eros continued, “I got Freezerburn going. Kinda. Yang doesn’t think it’s a date, but it’s going strong!”

Aphrodite said nothing, staring at her son in amazement before groaning and walking towards her large, spacious bed. She pulled out a jug of wine from underneath a cupboard, poured it into a golden chalice and began to drink.

“No, no, no. This is wrong, the pairings weren’t supposed to be this way. It was supposed to be Bumblebee, Arkos, and White Rose, not Knightshade, Milk and Cereal, and Freezerburn. It doesn’t make sense!”

Aphrodite paused to take another drink, looking at a shameful Eros from the corner of her eye. Then her eyes widened, and she stopped drinking. Slowly, she put her chalice down and turned towards a large, spacious wall next to her bed. Her mind raced, and her hand slowly drifted towards the wall in a gentle caress.

“Or…do they?” she wondered aloud.

“Mother?” Eros asked, slightly concerned. But before he could make his way over, Aphrodite sharply raised her hand and stopped him in his tracks.

“Leave me, Eros. I am having…revelations, and I do not wish to be disturbed.”

Eros looked at his mother for a moment, then nodded and slightly bowed his head. “As you wish, Mother.”

With that, Eros turned around and flew out of the room, not too quickly but not too slowly, either. He pretended not to hear the faint, maniacal laughter coming from his mother’s room, and he tried not to think about what terrible force he had unwittingly unleashed.

~

The Sun had long since sunk beneath the horizon when Diana finally arrived on Mount Olympus. She had been spending the day stopping the Cheetah from committing some kind of themed crime spree, only to have to awkwardly console the furred woman after capturing her when she broke down and tearfully admitted it was all because she was without a mate, er, _date,_ for the holiday. Only once that was finished at the tail end of the day did she finally return to the Watchtower. She had barely stepped five feet into the space station when she was presented by a small wooden arrow, and it wasn’t hard for her to determine just who it came from. One check-in with RWBY and JNPR later, the Wonder Woman had flown as fast as she could towards Mount Olympus, where she was greeted by the perpetrator himself.

“Oh, thank Zeus, you’re here!” Eros said gratefully, either not recognizing or not caring about the wrathful look on Diana’s face.

“What is the meaning of this, Eros?” Diana demanded to know. “Why were your arrows—”

“We were trying to blossom romance, but I messed up!” Eros interrupted.

“You think?!” Diana shouted. “Eros, you need to reverse this, _now_.”

“I tried, but Mother…she won’t let me!” Eros explained, throwing his arms into the air then falling to his knees. “Please, make her see reason! I beg of you!”

Diana looked down at Eros then back up towards Aphrodite’s home on Mount Olympus. Orange flickers of flame told her that the Goddess of Love was very much still active, and with her sword in one hand and shield in the other, Diana carefully stepped forwards. As she drew closer to Aphrodite’s rooms, Diana began to hear cackling laughter, and when she parted the curtain to enter the Goddess’ room, her eyes widened.

“Hera have mercy…” Diana gasped. Gone was the luxurious, pristine room adorned with fine jewelry, smooth silks, and copious amounts of mirrors and cosmetics that Diana had come to expect with Aphrodite. Instead, every inch of the room was covered in hastily written charts. Charts filled with names that connected to others through long, red strings. She couldn’t even take a step without risking tangling herself in the web, and at the center of it all, madly poring herself over mountains of paper, was the Goddess of Love herself.

“Aphrodite?” Diana gently called out. Aphrodite’s head shot upward, her eyes red and bloodshot as she looked upon Diana. At first her expression was the definition of insanity, and for a moment Diana worried she’d have to fight the Goddess. But, instead, Aphrodite’s expression warped into jubilation, and before the Amazon knew it, she was held tightly by the Goddess’ arms.

“Oh, Diana! This is wonderful! I’m so, so happy you’re here!” Aphrodite exclaimed, swinging Diana around in a close circle. After several rotations, the Goddess let go of her unwitting captive and skipped back to her bed, not noticing the dizzy look on Diana’s face.

“Come, come! Let me show you my masterpiece!” Aphrodite insisted, beckoning Diana over with quick waves of her hand. Getting her head straight, Diana looked over at Aphrodite worriedly, then decided to take a risk and gently sheathed her sword and shield along her back.

“Aphrodite, what is this?” Diana asked.

“This, Diana, is the greatest discovery in the history of shipping I have ever seen! Not since Helen of Troy have I been so enthused!” Aphrodite exclaimed, moving her arms towards the papers and silently begging Diana to look upon them. Despite her better judgement, and urged along with Aphrodite’s quick, maddened nodding, Diana took one of the papers and held it up to her face. Her eyes scrunched as she tried to make out the Greek writing, but soon recognized the names being shown.

“This is RWBY and JNPR,” Diana pointed out, and Aphrodite’s smile exploded.

“Yes, it is!” Aphrodite exclaimed, bringing herself close to the Amazon. “You see, Diana, this morning I made a serendipitous discovery. Up until now, my entire thinking had been wrong! I had been focusing on the wrong pairings!”

“Okay…?” Diana honestly had no idea what Aphrodite meant by that, but something told her she was about to find out. If Aphrodite realized Diana’s discomfort, she didn’t show it as she continued along.

“Or, should I say, I was too _constrained_! It’s not just Arkos, Bumblebee, or White Rose that can work! They _all_ can work!”

“Arkos? Bumble… What are those?” Diana asked, honestly lost.

“They’re shipping names, Diana,” Aphrodite scoffed, shaking her head in disappointment. “Arkos for Jaune and Pyrrha, Bumblebee for Blake and Yang, and White Rose for Ruby and Weiss! Seriously, it’s super easy. Keep up with the times.”

“Shipping names?” Diana asked. She looked back down at the paper, and saw that there were hundreds of these shipping names written down. “So, is this a…?”

“A shipping chart, yes!” Aphrodite announced, nodding wildly. “After RWBY and JNPR arrived on Earth, I had immediately noticed their potential and had begun observing them. Their personalities, quirks, histories and more! Prime relationship material, Diana! A few rose above the rest, of course, and in my folly I had convinced myself that those frontrunners were the only viable ships!”

“Okay…?”

“But then, nothing happened! It was frustrating beyond belief, so I had Eros try to speed things along. Spread some romance between them, only for my son, bless his heart, to hit the wrong targets.”

“I take it that’s why Blake was flirting with Jaune, Ruby awkwardly doing so with Pyrrha, and Weiss took Yang on a date?”

“Yes, although to be fair, Freezerburn was the backup plan in case Bumblebee didn’t work out. Anyway,” Aphrodite continued, ignoring the exasperated look on Diana’s face, “my son’s blunder got me thinking. Then I thought some more, then some more, and finally I realized: Knightshade, Milk and Cereal, ships I had so cruelly dismissed, _worked_. They worked so well together!”

“I see,” Diana said half-mindedly as she read through the rest of the scrambled writings of a madwoman.

“Of course, I couldn’t be blamed for not seeing the connection before. Neither party really interacted that much, so it didn’t seem to click. But now I see the light! With Knightshade, we have an outgoing human boy breaking a reclusive Faunus girl out of her shell, teaching her that perhaps not all humans are bad while at the same time she builds up his own self-worth and confidence, teaching him that he isn’t as worthless as he believes himself to be! With Milk and Cereal, a champion finds a connection with a young prodigy thrust into a world that she wasn’t truly ready for, and together they brave it and all the dangers it throws at them! They’re so cute!”

“Uh-huh,” Diana replied as she held up a paper. “Then what’s with the rest of this?”

“Oh, the others? You see, Diana, after I realized the truth, I began to think. If Knightshade and Milk and Cereal could work, what about others? Ships I had never truly considered to be viable suddenly could be, so I combed through their lives. Each person they’ve ever interacted with I charted and plotted, and found the same thing! They could work!”

Diana glanced down at a ship named ‘Baked Alaska.’ “Neopolitan and Yang Xiao Long? Didn’t she try to kill Yang?”

“Some would, admittedly, require more effort than others. But, who doesn’t love a good redemptive love story?”

“I’m fairly certain that wouldn’t be the actual result,” Diana mumbled, then continued reading. “Hold on, most of these people they haven’t even met yet. Who’s Kara?”

“Oh, as if such paltry concerns as time and space, or whether they’ve actually met each other, matter in the face of love!” Aphrodite insisted, ignoring Diana’s question. Diana looked at the Goddess with narrow eyes, then sighed and placed the parchment down.

“If that is the case, how come you only ‘shipped’ Ren and Nora with each other?” Diana asked. To her slight surprise, Aphrodite shot her a scandalous expression.

“Renora is sacred, Diana,” Aphrodite insisted. Diana looked at her plainly, then stood up and walked over to her.

“Look, Aphrodite. All of this is…” Diana struggled to find a word as the Goddess of Love looked upon her expectantly, then finally managed to say, “impressive. But don’t you think you’ve gone too far?”

“What do you mean?” Aphrodite asked, not seeing the plain issue. Expecting this, Diana directed Aphrodite’s attention towards her entire room, forcing her to take it all in.

“Look at this. You practically turned your room into a warzone. You’re treating people’s lives as though they are playthings, and that’s not right.”

“I’m trying to make them happy!” Aphrodite insisted, but Diana shook her head.

“And I understand that. But forcing people to get into a relationship just because you want them to or because you think they would look cute together is not the way to go. You’re right, I think many of these ships could work and would look adorable together. But only if that is what they want to do. If Jaune and Pyrrha want to take their relationship to the next level, or decide to stay as friends, that’s their decision to make. Same with Blake and Yang, Ruby and Weiss, or any of these combinations you’ve created. They aren’t toys to play with and manipulate on a board. They are real people with their own tastes and desires. Besides, isn’t love that blossoms naturally sweeter than love forced upon them by a divine hand?”

“I…” Aphrodite paused, looking over her room once again. A long, heavy silence filled the air, and finally it broke with a long, sullen and resigned sigh. “I guess you’re right, Diana.”

“I know I am, and so do you,” Diana gently said, patting the despondent Goddess on the shoulder.

“Sorry,” Aphrodite apologized, walking over to sit on her bed dejectedly. “I got so caught up in the moment that I lost myself again, didn’t I?”

“Yeah, you did. But, at least you can make it right,” Diana insisted, and Aphrodite nodded.

“Of course, of course.” She snapped her fingers, a pulse of energy radiating from them. “There, the effects of Eros’ arrows are reversed. They are no longer under their spell.”

“Thank you, my Lady,” Diana replied, standing up and giving a slight bow. She then took a look around the room and added, “Will you need any assistance?”

“No, don’t trouble yourself. I can clean up my own messes. Run along now, I need to get started.”

With that, Diana nodded and turned to walk out of the room, ducking underneath the web of strings to do so.

“Oh, since you’re here!” Aphrodite called out. “Do you want me to help out with the Batman? Or maybe Superman!”

“ _Goodbye_ , Aphrodite!”

~

“Oh, man! This food is delicious!” Yang exclaimed as she chowed down on perhaps the nicest food she had ever eaten. The most expensive, at the very least, but it had quickly proven to be worth it. The food practically melted into her mouth into a mélange of pure, savory flavor, and she couldn’t get enough of it.

“I’m glad you’re enjoying it,” Weiss said as she daintily ate her food, gazing longingly at Yang. The blonde didn’t notice Weiss’ expression, continuing to eat her food as the quartet of violinists played beside their table. Weiss had gone all out in her efforts, and she hoped they would prove to be fruitful by the time the night was done.

“Seriously, you didn’t have to go this far just to cheer me up,” Yang insisted as she drank some sparkling water from her glass. Weiss, her expression not changing, gently took hold of Yang’s hand and clasped it with both of hers.

“Trust me, Yang, when I say this. You deserve this, you are worth it, and don’t ever think otherwise.”

“…Thank you,” Yang replied, a heartfelt smile growing on her face. “Wow, Weiss. Honestly, didn’t expect this from you. You really know how to cheer a girl up, don’t ya?”

Weiss leaned back into her chair and smiled proudly. “I’m full of surprises, Yang. Stick around and I might show you.”

At her declaration, Yang laughed and closed her eyes. It was music to Weiss’ ears, and she couldn’t help but smile warmly in turn. Then, as though a switch was flipped, she shot up in confusion, looking around at her surroundings as though she just woke up from a trance.

“What am I doing?” she asked herself aloud.

Yang finished laughing and wiped her eyes. “Being a good friend, Weiss. I mean, what else would you call treating me to the nicest restaurant in town, complete with a private booth and professional violinists to create a nice atmosphere, just to cheer me up when I’m feeling down? If that’s not friendship, I don’t know what is.”

“…Yes, that’s exactly what it is,” Weiss slowly agreed, trying and failing to force herself not to blush as hours of memories and unnatural(?) emotions swarmed her mind. Desires that she had never once considered, and ones that she vowed Yang would never, ever learn of. If the blonde did, Weiss knew she would never hear the end of it.

~

“So, Jaune,” Blake dryly began in front of JNPR’s room. Ruby and Pyrrha were inside, leaving the two all to themselves, which the Faunus intended to take advantage of.

“Yeah, Blake?” Jaune asked, slightly suspicious.

“I was wondering. Would you like to go get some coffee with me sometime?” Blake asked with practiced casualness, a slight blush crossing her face.

Jaune looked at her for a moment, struggling to find the reason why she would want to do that. Why she was acting the way this way for the past few hours. None of it made much sense to the boy, but at the same time, who was he to give up a chance at a nice cup of coffee?

“Sure, I don’t… Wait a minute,” Jaune paused, everything clicking into place. “Like, you mean…?”

“A date, yes,” Blake finished while studiously examining her fingernails. Jaune’s eyes widened, and at once everything made sense.

“Oh, uh. Wow, I didn’t… I didn’t think you wanted to do that kind of thing with me,” he admitted. Blake nodded, her detached air belied by the blush growing slightly larger as Jaune began to ramble. “I mean, I have to be honest, I never really saw you in that way before. Not that I don’t think you’re pretty! Gods, you’re beautiful, but I never really felt you saw me that way. Always thought you were into Sun, or maybe Yang? Although, come to think of it, both of them are blonde like me, so maybe that’s why? Yang definitely isn’t a Faunus, not that that’s a problem or anything! I honestly think your cat ears are cute, especially when they twitch! Oh Gods, I’m rambling. Uh, sorry.”

Jaune stopped himself, closed his eyes, and recomposed. “So, uh. Yeah, Blake. If that’s what you want to do, I’m all for it. We can give it a shot, see if it—”

“Actually,” Blake cut in, her eyes wide and darting around with her face flush with embarrassment, “I, uh, changed my mind. We wouldn’t work.”

“…What?”

“I’m sorry. It’s not you, it’s me.”

“…Then what was-?” Before Jaune could finish, a loud, shrill scream came from inside his team’s room. A moment later, a red blur burst through the door, forming a nice clean hole as red rose petals drifted everywhere.

“DON’T LOOK AT ME!” Ruby shouted in embarrassment. Jaune looked at the disappearing cloud in shock as Pyrrha leaned over the hole while radiating confused concern, then he looked back to where Blake was only to see her dissipate into a shadow. Jaune silently stared at the now empty spot, his mind struggling to find some way to rationalize everything.

“Jaune?” Pyrrha asked in concern, then her partner looked at her with sullen, dejected eyes.

“Pyrrha, what are these games of emotions we play?”

[~]

 

_A Lovely Dream_  by Jesse K  
  
~  
  
After a long, hard day training, Jaune was laying back and relaxing without a care in the world. Today was a good day, and he felt content with himself. So much so that when Pyrrha suddenly sat next to him and leaned into his shoulder to snuggle close, Jaune didn't even bat an eye. He even leaned his head towards her, to which Pyrrha wiggled happily.  
  
"Oh Jaune, this is just comfy as could be," Pyrrha cooed, snuggling in closer. "Thanks for training with me today. You're getting  _so_  good with your sword. I'm very proud of you."  
  
Jaune's smile widened, and he nodded slowly. "Yeah, I'm proud of me, too."  
  
Another body plopped down on his other side, and yet again Jaune didn't react other than simply turn his head. He was greeted by a mess of blonde hair splayed over most of his left as Yang essentially lay across him. A toothy grin was flashed towards him, and he didn't think anything was weird about why Yang was choosing to do this perfectly normal behavior.  
  
"Ah, you're not just good at working a girl, you're nice to lay on, too," she said. Jaune moved to reply, only for him to be interrupted.  
  
"Make room," a voice demanded as white joined yellow. Weiss nuzzled up against Jaune's chest as she found a place parallel to Yang. "Mm, yes. This is nice."  
  
For a brief moment, Jaune wondered why the composed and elegant Weiss had chosen to turn him into a human bed, but he pushed those thoughts to the side. Everything was just too perfect to suddenly question why Weiss was acting somewhat out of character. Then Blake suddenly trundled in and dropped a freshly baked fish in Jaune's lap. Without even grunting, Jaune tilted his head to look at the steaming hot dish then back up to see Blake's expectant and proud face.  
  
"I hope you like it," she said before curling up at his feet. Now Jaune was confused, but those questions quickly subsided after some more thought. It was perfectly natural for Blake to bring Jaune a fish. He certainly didn't know how to catch and cook one, and the cat Faunus clearly picked up on that. Hence the gift. If anything, he figured he should be thankful, and began thinking of ways to pay her back.  
  
"Hey, there's nowhere left for me!" Ruby protested before moving the fish over to the table and then plopping herself in his lap, wrapping her arms around him before snuggling. Seeing Ruby's petulant behavior, Jaune laughed.  
  
"There's enough of me to go around," he said confidently as the girls all held on tighter. Suddenly Nora pushed her head in from behind next to his, which finally caused him to jump slightly in surprise.  
  
"Hey, we're okay with sharing," Nora declared. Reality began to reassert itself, and Jaune suddenly realized just how strange and off his current situation was. Then, before he could even ask what was going on, Ren came in from the other side.  
  
"In each direction," he filled in before taking out a bottle and spritzing it into his mouth a few times.  
  
"GAGH!" Jaune yelped as he suddenly woke up from his dream, rubbing his head as he looked around in the dark. He was alone in his bed, his teammates sleeping soundly in their own. Nora was snoring softly, her arm hanging off the side of the bed along with her leg on the opposite side. Ren was quiet, Jaune only able to hear his soft breathing. Pyrrha, on the other hand, was snoring like a train, something he again vowed to never let her know she did.  
  
"What was that?!" he asked himself. "I'm not even into most of them. And why were they acting so weird? Why was _I_ so confident? I'm not that suave."  
  
Jaune took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and finally groaned as he laid back down. "Uh, that's the last time I eat Blake's baked fish and drink one of Ren's shakes at the same time so close to bed."

[~][~]


End file.
